Mastering the Basics
by aroneden
Summary: Overpowered jutsus are overrated! Watch as Naruto uses only low rank jutsus (C rank or lower) and his wits to defeat his opponents. Smart Naruto, Harem, Naruto x FemHaku x Tenten x Fu x Samui Part 1 of 2 and will cover Pre-Timeskip. Adopted from shadowsrisen.
1. Chapter 1

**A.N. 1**

Hello everyone! I decided to make a Naruto fanfiction centered on a smart Naruto. He will learn low rank jutsus and find creative ways to use them. The **Kawarimi no Jutsu (Body Replacement Technique)** is super useful, I don't know why it's not used more often. Maybe it has to do with not having enough logs around?

This story will be AU and will follow the canon storyline loosely just so I can match with the timeline. I'll try my best not to bash characters so forgive me if it looks like I am. Regarding pairings, honestly I don't know at the moment. It won't be a NaruSaku, NaruHina, or NaruIno because there are so many fanfiction of those pairings. Some characters will be older or younger, for example, Naruto will be a year older than the rest of rookie 9 or the same age as Team Gai.

 **A.N. 2**

This chapter has been edited as of 12/26/15. The pairing for this story has been confirmed. The pairing will be a Naruto x femHaku x Tenten x Fu x Samui. The pairing is final as the poll has been closed. No other girls will be included because I don't want the harem to be too big. Also this story's plot is about Naruto learning C-Rank and below jutsus. Jutsus such as Shadow Clones and Rasengan will be learned by Naruto in the sequel. Thanks for reading!

 **A.N. 3**

Hello everybody, this is Aroneden! I loved this story as soon as I read the first chapter and so when I found out that the author was putting it up for adoption I had to take it so I could continue it. This will follow the original author's, shadowsrisen, layout for the future with my own takes on how certain things should go. I am a bit of a perfectionist so my releases might come a little slow but I will not let this story die so easily like so many others that have not reached a satisfactory end. Also look forward to my own original story incorporating many of my favorite elements from quite a few of the Naruto stories I have read. I will be posting the original author's original 14 chapters as soon as I have looked them over and will then start working on my continuation from there. I hope you enjoy this story as much as I did and will look forward to what will come in the future.

If you notice any grammar/spelling issues, please inform me so I can reedit the chapter. Well I hope you enjoy the first chapter of Master of the Basics.

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.

"Talking"

' _Thoughts'_

 **Jutsu/Biju**

 **' _Biju Thoughts_ '**

 **Chapter 1: The Beginning**

It was a peaceful morning in Konohagakure no Sato as many of the civilians were going about their daily lives. The lone exception was a little blond boy running throughout the streets, hoping to shake his pursers. The boy hid between gaps of buildings while sticking in the shadows to conceal his bright orange jumpsuit. The blonde paused to catch his breath as he wiped the sweat off of his whiskered face. Green googles were fastened on his forehead as his bright blue eyes scanned the surroundings, eyeing his safe haven.

Finding the coast to be clear, the boy dashed towards the red light district of Konoha. He smiled, sure of his victory, when he was suddenly hoisted into the air by his jacket collar. "NA-RU-TO!" An irritated male voice said as he looked at the boy. Nine year old Uzumaki Naruto turned to see his diabolical Academy instructor.

"Geh." Naruto blanched. "How do you always find me Iruka-sensei?" The boy asked, trying to struggle out of his captor's grasp. Umino Iruka was an average height Chunin that served as an Academy instructor. He wore blue shinobi overalls underneath his green flak jacket. Iruka's most prominent features were his brown hair that was typically tied in a ponytail and a scar on the bridge of his nose.

"We're going to the Hokage, where you'll explain yourself." Iruka said. He placed the young boy on his shoulder and walked towards the Hokage building, ignoring the various stares from the villagers of Konoha. Upon arrival, Iruka greeted the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen. Hiruzen was an elderly man that served as Konohagakure's leader. Despite his elderly appearance, many shinobis feared him for his vast arrays of jutsus. This eventually earned him the moniker, 'The Professor.' As the strongest person in the village, his word was typically the law but a few were beginning to undermine his rule. Hiruzen had initially retired from his position but was forced back into duty after the death of his successor.

"Ah thank you Iruka. I was hoping that you would be able to find Naruto-kun." The Sandaime said as he lit his pipe of tobacco. The scarred Chunin bowed in recognition before dropping Naruto unceremoniously on the ground.

"Be a little gentle will you, Iruka-sensei." The boy complained as he rubbed his sore behind. Before Iruka could retort to his student, the Sandaime intervened.

"Naruto I have several reports from people claiming that they've seen you painting graffiti all over the Uchiha Compound." Hiruzen stated. "Is this true?" The old man asked for confirmation. Sometimes the villagers would blame Naruto for things the young boy didn't committed in order to get Naruto in trouble.

"Of course that was me. No one else is able to pull off a prank that awesome. I actually think this is my best prank yet old man." Naruto replied as he gave a foxy grin. He had pranked the Uchihas because they often sided with villagers when the villagers pressed charges against Naruto. Of course the charges were usually falsely accused but the military police didn't believe him.

"Show Hokage-sama some respect Naruto." Iruka scolded as he wished his student would mind his manners. The Hokage could only chuckle as the two began bickering with each other.

' _If only the rest of the villagers would treat Naruto like Iruka does.'_ Hiruzen remarked sadly. He knew that the boy was hated for what he carried. The Sandaime had tried a variety of ways to make Naruto's life easier. From making laws to giving the boy a monthly stipend was just some of the ways that he tried. Still the villagers would try to sabotage the boy every chance they got. "Well since you take credit for the act, as punishment, you're to clean the ENTIRE compound."

Naruto's face instantly soured from the words. "WHAT!?" He shouted loudly. "What do you mean I have to clean it?" The blonde asked in protest. Hiruzen calmly took a drag from his pipe and blew the smoke into the air.

"Think of this as a lesson. Shinobi are required to have a variety of skills to succeed in a mission. One of those skills is stealth. Learning to complete your objective without being spotted could be a matter of life and death." The Sandaime advised the Academy student. Naruto rubbed his chin as he processed the words he just heard.

"So as long as I don't get caught in the act, I don't have to worry about receiving punishments." The boy summarized while flashing a wide grin. Both Hiruzen and Iruka shuddered at the innocent smile. But before they could say anything, Naruto continued. "Thanks for the advice old man. I'm going to head off and start on my punishment. I'm going to make sure that this is my last punishment." With that, he finished and left the room.

The two adults silently stared at the door where the blonde left through. "Iruka please tell me I didn't make the situation worse." Hiruzen hoped while rubbing his temples with his thumbs. A headache was quickly forming because of Naruto.

"Don't worry Hokage-sama, there's absolutely no way that we won't be able to catch Naruto if he pulls another prank." Iruka tried to reassure the Hokage. _'That being said, besides me, no one else has been able to catch him recently. I hope I'm thinking too much into this.'_ The brunette Chunin mused.

 ***Later that evening***

Naruto finally finished scrubbing out all of the paint from his prank. He had forgotten how huge the place actually was. The Uchiha Compound was located northeast of Konohagakure, isolated from most of the village. The compound spanned several acres, making it easily the biggest clan compound. Collapsing on the ground near the front entrance, Naruto remembered the Uchihas he saw during his cleanup. Almost all of them were subtly glaring at him or whispering things like 'demon boy' behind his back.

He did manage to see Sasuke, who was practicing on a dummy. Naruto usually didn't associated with the other boy as they were stark opposites. Sasuke was the upcoming prodigy while Naruto was known as the dead last. The blond was overly friendly while the Uchiha kept more to himself. This resulted in the two arguing whenever they saw each other. This time was no different as Sasuke said that Naruto was trespassing. They argued until the blond eventually left to finish cleaning up.

Naruto steadied his breath as he laid on the ground. Hearing footsteps coming towards him, Naruto turned to see a woman carrying a plate and a glass of water. The long blue haired woman was wearing a dark blue kimono held together by a white sash. On the back of the kimono was the Uchiha symbol, a fan that was red on top and white on the bottom. "Good job on cleaning up your prank." The woman smiled as she bent down on the ground. She placed the glass and plate in front of Naruto. The boy sat up and looked at her oddly.

"Who are you?" Naruto pointed to her. "And what's this?" He then pointed to the plate that was holding several sandwiches.

"Oh forgive me." The woman replied. "I'm Uchiha Mikoto and you are-"

"Uzumaki Naruto, nice to meet you, dattebayo," He replied back while smiling. The lady in front of him seem friendly. She hadn't curse or glare at him even after he told her his name.

' _Hmm dattebayo, why does that sound familiar?'_ Mikoto mused as an image of a red haired female popped into her head. Looking closely at Naruto's features, she began to see his resemblance to Kushina. _'Could he possibly be Kushina's son but I thought the baby died along with Kushina?'_ Mikoto continued to stare at Naruto, unnerving the blond. ' _Oh Kami, if you take away those whiskers, then you have a carbon copy of a younger Minato. I need to talk to Hokage-sama about this.'_

"Is there something on my face?" Naruto wondered as he began to feel around his face. This snapped the blue haired woman from her trance.

"Oh it's nothing." Mikoto replied quickly. "Here, have something to eat. I'm pretty sure you're feeling hungry." She said to change the subject. Naruto eyed the sandwiches suspiciously, wondering if it was tampered with. It was odd that someone was willing to give him free food. The only person that ever did that was the Sandaime. Seeing the food, caused his stomach to rumble. With his stomach winning out, he graciously accepted the sandwiches and began devouring them.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Naruto asked with a mouth full of food. Mikoto was disturbed by the sight. She briefly wondered if he was ever taught manners.

"Uzumaki-san, please finish eating before talking." The Uchiha matriarch released a small killing intent to get her point across. The blonde was startled by the killing intent and quickly nodded his head. After a minute, the plate and glass were empty.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" The boy once again asked. "You can call me Naruto by the way. I'm not good with the honorifics and stuff."

"Well can I call you Naruto-kun then?" Mikoto's question was answered with a nod of Naruto. "Well the reason why I'm being nice to you is because I saw you working hard cleaning up. So I thought you deserved a reward."

Naruto tilted his head in confusion. "Why should I get a reward?" He asked before clarifying. "This was my punishment for pranking your compound."

"That may be but nonetheless, you deserve something for working hard." Mikoto smiled at him. He blushed from the praise.

"Thank you Mikoto-san." Naruto said shyly as he scratched the back of his head. She frowned mentally, wondering if the boy was ever praised before. Standing back to full height, Mikoto helped Naruto off the ground.

"Now I must ask, Naruto-kun, why did you prank the Uchiha compound?" The blue haired woman inquired. Naruto pondered for a second before giving his answer.

"Well someone had to teach the Uchiha pricks a lesson." The boy answered. Realizing his mistake, Naruto hastily spoke one more. "I don't mean you're a prick Mikoto-san. I'm talking about the other Uchihas." He said nervously, hoping he didn't offend her. Mikoto chuckled at how the little boy was acting.

"Can you promise me not to prank this place again?" Mikoto asked politely.

Naruto shook his head, much to her dislike. "I can't promise that." The blonde replied.

"Okay, how about a deal then?" She proposed, getting his attention. "If you promise not to prank the Uchiha Compound then I will teach you how to be a shinobi."

"How do you know I attend the academy?" He asked.

Mikoto smiled as she answered his question. "My sons, Sasuke-kun and Itachi-kun, talk about you." It was more of Sasuke complaining how the blonde boy kept on interrupting class with his pranks. Naruto received the shock of his short life.

"You're the mom of Sasuke-teme!" He shouted in disbelief. "How can the mom be so nice but the son be such a jerk?" Naruto muttered, trying to wrap it around his head that Mikoto was Sasuke's mom. "Wait a minute. Who in the heck is Itachi?" As on cue, an ANBU wearing all black and a weasel mask appeared before the two.

"Itachi-kun/Weasel-nii." The two said from the appearance of the ANBU. Naruto ran up to the ANBU and gave him a hug. Every time someone tried to harass Naruto, an ANBU would typically be there to intervene. Usually it was Weasel, Dog, or Cat that came to his rescue. Weasel would even piggyback Naruto back to his apartment. The blond loved to fly across the rooftops on Weasel's back as he felt safe from all dangers.

"Hello Kaa-san, Naruto-kun." Itachi replied to the two, slightly surprised to find Naruto in front of the compound.

"Wait." Naruto said in realization. "So your name is Itachi, not Weasel?" The blond asked as he released the hug. It would be weird if his name was actually Weasel.

Itachi nodded to the question. "Yes, my name is Itachi." The Uchiha heir said as he removed his mask. "Naruto-kun, can you promise me not to tell anyone my real name?"

"Sure thing Itachi-nii. Your secret is safe with me." The boy replied confidently. Mikoto smiled watching the two boys interact. "Mikoto-san is it too late to accept your deal?"

"Of course not Naruto-kun. I take it that you accept then?" She asked to which he nodded. "Well, how about I meet you at Training Ground 11 after school?"

"Where's that?" Naruto inquired. Itachi decided to answer the question.

"Directly south of the Shinobi Academy, there are multiple training ground. There is usually a sign that indicates what number the training ground is. Simply find the number 11 and you'll be at the right training ground." The Uchiha male explained.

The jinchuriki nodded to them and was about to head off when Mikoto stopped him. "Wait a minute Naruto-kun." She said before heading to her home. A minute later, she came out with a book. "Here Naruto-kun." Mikoto handed him a book titled 'Shinobi Basics 101'. "I want you to try to read all of this before we see each other tomorrow."

"I hate books." The blonde muttered. "I don't want to read it." Naruto said as he politely handed the book back.

Mikoto denied it and shook her head. "Naruto-kun if you want to be a great shinobi, you need to read books."

Itachi agreed with his mother. "Naruto-kun, books have knowledge in them. The more knowledge one possesses, the stronger the ninja becomes." The male Uchiha reasoned. Naruto sighed, knowing it would be futile to resist. He reluctantly accepted the book.

"Okay, I'll try to finish it by tomorrow." Naruto frowned slightly before turning to the two Uchihas. "Bye Itachi-nii and Mikoto-san." He said his farewells before leaving the compound and towards Ichiraku's.

"Kaa-san." Itachi said to get her attention. "May I ask why you wish to train Naruto-kun?"

' _There's a chance that he's the son of my best friend and she'll never forgive me for not being in his life.'_ Obviously she couldn't tell Itachi that. "I always wanted to help my sons train but your father wouldn't permit it. So I thought it would be nice to train Naruto-kun."

Itachi stared at her impassively and nodded. "That is fine mother but I believe you should talk with Hokage-sama about this." He said and began walking towards their house.

"Well I'll do just that. Tell your father and Sasuke-kun I will be back shortly." Mikoto then used **Shunshin no Jutsu (Body Flicker Technique)** to appear outside the Hokage Tower. Luckily it was late in the day so having an audience with the Hokage was easy. After being let in by the secretary, she appear in the room where Sandaime was doing paperwork.

"Oh Mikoto-chan what can I do for you today?" Hiruzen smiled as he glanced up from his work and gestured Mikoto to sit.

The Uchiha matriarch sat down as the elderly man gave her his attention. "Hello Hokage-sama, I wish to talk about matter regarding a certain blond headed boy and his heritage."

With a wave, Hiruzen dismissed all the ANBU in the room and activated the privacy seals. "What do you wish to talk about that pertains to Naruto?" The image of a friendly grandfather was replaced with that of the **Shinobi no Kami (God of Shinobi)**.

"I wish to know why I wasn't informed that Kushina's son was alive." The Uchiha woman went straight to the matter at hand.

Hiruzen took a puff from his tobacco pipe. "Why do you believe that Naruto is the son of Kushina?" Mikoto let out a sigh and began explaining.

"Hokage-sama. I can't believe no one including myself hadn't seen it sooner. If you take away Naruto's whiskers, you'll have a carbon copy of Minato when he was younger." Mikoto said as she was still in disbelief.

Hiruzen nodded, believing the same. The nod was all Mikoto needed to confirm her suspicions. "When people are blinded by hate, they fail to see the most obvious of things." He remarked sadly and wondered if the village will ever regain the Will of Fire. Meanwhile, Mikoto was feeling angry not only at the villagers but angry at herself for not noticing it sooner.

"Does he know about his heritage?" She asked even though she suspected that Naruto didn't know.

"Just like with the Kyuubi, his heritage is an S-Class secret. This is to prevent the likes of Iwa and Kumo coming here to either kill or kidnap him." The Hokage explained. She agreed because that would most likely happen if Iwa and Kumo would ever come to know of Naruto's existence.

"Hokage-sama, please allow me to adopt him. It is the least I could do for Kushina's boy after not being in his life for nine years." Mikoto knew she would feel Kushina's wrath if she ever saw the red head again.

"I'm afraid I cannot allow that." He answered.

"Why, Hokage-sama?" Mikoto was confused. Why was he refusing her?

"If I were to let one of the clans adopt Naruto, then that clan would have more power over the others due to the fact that Naruto is a jinchuriki. Believe me when I say that you weren't the first to approach me to adopt him after finding out his heritage." Hiruzen answered her.

"Who else knows besides us?" Mikoto was shocked that others knew of this secret as well.

Hiruzen took another puff from his pipe. He really was too old for this job. "Including us, it would be Jiraiya, Shikaku, and Shibi. Jiraiya is Naruto's godfather but unfortunately he has a spy network to run so he can't be here. Shikaku found out when he went to pick up his son from the park. He saw Naruto and immediately connected him to Minato. Shibi said that his kikaichu detected that Naruto's chakra was similar to his parents. The latter two also asked to adopt him."

"I see." The mood depressed as Mikoto uttered those words. "Would it be alright if I taught and trained him to be a shinobi?" She asked, hopeful of the Hokage's answer.

The mood was no longer gloomy as Hiruzen chuckled. "I see absolutely no problem with that."

"Thank you Hokage-sama." Mikoto's face instantly brightened as she bowed deeply.

"So the **Kawarimi no Megami (Goddess of Body Replacement)** is going to teach someone again." Hiruzen teased the younger woman.

Mikoto sighed at that nickname. "I really loath that moniker. Couldn't they come up with something else?" She frowned before addressing the rest of the statement. "I didn't even teach Shisui much, it was mostly due to his own hard work."

"According to him, you helped in making the **Shunshin no Shisui (Shisui of the Body Flicker)** into a deadly force he was known as. It's a pity that he committed suicide two years ago." Hiruzen remarked sadly. Shisui had committed suicide in hopes of quelling the flames of rebellion. It had worked as the Uchiha had temporarily halted their plans. It wasn't until recently that plans had begun anew. Mikoto nodded as she still remembered the compassionate Uchiha that was Itachi's best friend.

"Well I must leave to prepare dinner, please excuse me and have a good day Hokage-sama." She said as Hiruzen dismissed her. Mikoto exited the building with a swirl of leaves. The Sandaime sighed as he leaned back in his chair.

"It's a pity that there aren't more Uchiha like you Mikoto. I can only hope that your clan doesn't do something hasty and actually try a coup d'état. Hopefully I can patch things up soon. He turned back to his paperwork as the pile seemingly got bigger since he last saw it. "I really need to look for a successor."


	2. Chapter 2

**A.N. 1**

I've decided to change the title of this story to **Master of the Basics**. I've also decided to change the plot slightly. Naruto will now only learn C rank Jutsus and below. It fits in my story and it will be interesting to see how Naruto fights against others. So that automatically means no Shadow Clones since it is a B rank Kinjutsu.

Thank you everybody for the favorites and follows! That being said, this is my first story where I didn't get a single review. I'm probably being picky since, judging by the favorites and follows, people are interested in this story. Anyway if this chapter is good or bad, I hope you'll review as this is the longest chapter I've ever written.

 **A.N. 2**

This chapter has been edited as of 12/29/15.

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.

"Talking"

' _Thoughts'_

 **Jutsu/Biju**

 **' _Biju Thoughts_ '**

 **Chapter 2: A Learning Process**

On the way towards his two story apartment building, Naruto let out a heavy sigh. Graffiti of all colors decorated the wall leading towards his door. Words such as 'demon' and 'die' was commonly repeated among the writings. Naruto unlocked the door to his apartment room. He locked the door quickly after stepping into the apartment that the Hokage had brought for him when he was 4.

At just 4 years old, he was kicked out from the orphanage and left to wander the streets for food and shelter. His 'food' was overdue food products that were in the trash while his 'shelter' was either the forests or somewhere in the playgrounds. His luck turned for the better when the old man found him near the Sarutobi Estate. The Hokage quickly took him inside for some food and clothing. That day was the happiest day in young Naruto's life. Not only did he get to eat good food and had a roof over his head, the old man looked at him differently from the rest of the villagers.

Where the villagers would glare at him with hate and scorn, the Hokage looked at Naruto with sorrow and guilt. The boy didn't understand why but he was just glad that it was different. The Sandaime proceeded to rent him a room at an apartment complex on the edge of the red light district. As soon as he moved in, all the other occupants moved out. Even the land lord moved away, leaving him all alone in the two story building.

Even though Naruto didn't need to pay rent, he always wondered why people avoided him or downright hated him. For as long as he could remember, the villagers always looked at him in contempt. What crime did he commit that his birth was treated like the plague? Naruto figured his parents must have done something horrible. They either died or abandoned him, making the villagers punish him for their actions.

Naruto looked at the state of his desolate apartment room. The refrigerator, although in working condition, was mostly empty. Luckily, the cabinets were filled up to the brim with ramen cups. The day he discovered the food of the gods was the second happiest day of his life. Not only was it cheap but it tasted amazing. The small brown table that he owned was found in a nearby garbage heap. Cuts of all sizes decorated the table as if it was made that way.

His sofa was something he found in one of the abandoned rooms. At first it was in good condition but now cotton stuffing puffed out from the tears. One day, someone snuck into his apartment and ruined all of his furniture with a sharp object. Naruto could've asked the Hokage for help getting furniture but he didn't want to bother the old man who had an entire village to run. Deciding a shower was the best course of action, Naruto placed his orange monstrosity (as his teachers called it) into the washer. After a long shower, Naruto donned a white sleeveless shirt along with black shorts.

As he placed his orange outfit in the dryer for use tomorrow, he remembered the book that Mikoto gave him. Grabbing the book, the blonde headed into his room. His room was vacant except for a single brown dresser and a spring mattress. He had found both in decent condition in the other, abandoned, apartment rooms. Plopping down on the bed, he looked at the book.

Naruto hated reading books with a passion. To him, it was all a bunch of big words mixed together to make long, confusing, sentences. Whenever he asked the teachers to explain them, they would spurn him and call him an idiot for not understanding. With reluctance, the blonde opened the first page of the book. A note fell from the book and landed on his stomach. Naruto grabbed the note and read its contents.

 _To Naruto-kun_

 _If you found this note, then you listened to me and attempted to read the book. Great job on following my orders and you avoided punishment when we meet tomorrow._

Naruto sweat dropped at that sentence. Mikoto was such a nice person, there was no way she was going to punish him…right? Shaking himself out of his thoughts, he continued reading the rest of the note.

 _I know some words will be difficult for you to understand so I want you to write down those words on a piece of paper and we'll discuss them tomorrow. I want you to know that reading this book will help you on the path on to becoming a ninja. If you don't believe me, this was Itachi-kun's first book. Without further ado, finish this book before we see each other tomorrow._

 _Your future sensei, Uchiha Mikoto_

Naruto couldn't believe this book was once Itachi's. The male Uchiha was one of the strongest shinobi he had ever met. Granted, the blonde hadn't met many shinobis but he was sure that Itachi was strong. Deciding not to waste any more time, Naruto dove into the first chapter and began reading silently.

 _A shinobi is a trained warrior that uses chakra. He's not a common bandit because he has a home to protect. That home is Konohagakure no Sato. In every Konoha shinobi dwells the Will of Fire. The Will of Fire is a belief that every shinobi loves, believes in, cherishes, and fights to protect the village as previous generations had done before them. This belief is what allows Konoha to survive three Great Shinobi Wars and invasions from other villages._

Naruto brought his hand up to his chest. _'Is it possible for me to have the Will of Fire as well? Can I honestly protect the same people that scorn me? Jiji once said that a Hokage protects his people. Maybe that's the same thing.'_ Naruto thought to himself as he continued reading the book.

While reading, Naruto jotted down several words that he was unsure of on the back of Mikoto's note. Different topics came up in the book such as stealth, traps, chakra, jutsus, and etc. There was so much that he didn't know. Did his classmates learn these things when he wasn't in class? He decided to finish the rest at school tomorrow to make sure he wasn't late for class in the morning. _'Who knows, maybe I won't be kicked out this time.'_ Naruto thought as he drifted into slumber.

 ***Next Day***

The sun directed its rays at Naruto's face, causing him to twitch slightly. Blue cerulean eyes slowly opened and went towards his alarm clock. Noticing that he was still early, Naruto took a quick shower, put on his jumpsuit, and had a cup ramen breakfast like always. The blonde grabbed the book from his bed, shoved it into his bag, and headed out of his apartment. Before he left, he made sure to lock his door. He didn't want anyone breaking into his apartment again. Finishing his preparations, he scurried off to the Academy.

When Naruto arrived to the class, he was greeted with an almost empty classroom. It seemed only a few people were here early. Not like any of them were his friends anyway. Naruto moved towards one of the window seats and pulled out the book and his notes, in case he came across any difficult words. He resumed reading where he left off last night. Naruto didn't notice the perplexed glances that his classmates gave him as they walked into the classroom. Most shrugged it off and went to talk to their friends.

A black haired boy, with his hair styled in a pineapple shape, and a brown haired boy arrived in the classroom together like always. The black haired boy was Shikamaru, the heir of the Nara Clan. His Clan was known for their intelligence and using deer antlers to make medicine. The chubby boy next to him was his best friend, Chouji. He was the heir of the Akimichi Clan, evident by the red swirls on his cheeks. The two Clans shared a close bond along with the Yamanaka Clan.

Shikamaru instantly noticed the oddity as he spotted the blond haired prankster. Chouji didn't notice as he was preoccupied with his bag of chips. Chouji and Shikamaru made their way towards Naruto and gave him a quick greeting. The three along with Kiba were troublemakers during the early days of the Academy. Naruto returned the greeting before immersed himself into the book again. Taking a seat next to blonde, with Chouji sitting next to him, Shikamaru looked at the thing that made the hyperactive boy so quiet.

The jinchuriki was quietly reading a book titled 'Shinobi Basics 101' like it was an everyday occurrence. Despite not knowing what caused his friend's sudden change, Shikamaru smirked that Naruto was trying to improve. The Nara heir exchanged glances with Chouji, who seemed to be smiling as well. Naruto always seemed to find ways to keep Shikamaru interested in his actions. The black haired boy decided to take a nap as he wasn't going to solve the mystery known as Naruto anytime soon.

His plans were quickly thrown out the window when a raging storm of girls were chasing after a certain Uchiha into the classroom. Of course, the two in front of the other girls was a girl with platinum blonde hair and a girl with cherry blossom pink hair. The platinum blonde girl had her hair tied in a high ponytail with a bang covering the right side of her face. She was Yamanaka Ino, the heiress to the Yamanaka Clan.

The girl Ino was bickering with was Haruno Sakura. The two were best friends until they discovered that they were crushing on the same boy. Sakura had on a big red bow on her head as her pink hair swooshed in the air. The two girls came barreling into the room seconds after Sasuke entered, leaving a dust cloud behind them.

"Can you loud mouth girls shut up? I'm going to go deaf." Inuzuka Kiba complained while covered his sensitive ears. His ninken, Akamaru, barked in agreement. His face had the signature Inuzuka's red fang markings on his cheeks. Akamaru, his white ninken, stayed mostly inside Kiba's grey, fur-lined hooded coat.

Although the rest of the class didn't say anything, they agreed with the Inuzuka's words. Ino and Sakura quickly stood in front of Kiba with the latter pointing at him. "Shut up mutt, I'm not loud." Sakura screeched out, much to the annoyance of everyone. In the corner of her eye, the pink haired girl spotted Naruto sitting next to Shikamaru and Chouji. "Hey Naruto-baka, what are you doing?"

The blonde boy turned his attention from the book to Sakura. "Oh hey Sakura-chan, how are you today?" He friendly greeted with a smile. He didn't catch the insult that she attached to his name.

She replied with a fist to Naruto's noggin. "I told you not to call me that baka!"

Ino chimed into the conversation. "Seriously though, what are you doing?" She was curious on what made the fellow blonde sit still. Normally he would be too busy plotting some elaborate prank to even attend class.

Naruto showed the two girls the book. "I'm reading this book." Laughter erupted from the class with the exception from Sasuke, Aburame Shino, Shikamaru, Chouji, and Hyuuga Hinata. The latter three frowned that everyone was laughing at him.

"The dead last is reading! I'm surprised that you even know how to read!" Kiba barked in between laughter. "I mean how's reading going to help you? You'll always be the dead last." More laughter was heard after Kiba spoke.

Naruto was livid at his classmates for mocking him. He was simply sitting and quietly reading without bothering anyone. What more could these people want from him? The jinchuriki was about to talk back to Kiba when he was interrupted by a lazy voice.

"You guys should really shut up. I can't sleep with this racket." Shikamaru said as he lifted his head up from his napping position.

"Shikamaru look at Naruto! The dobe is reading." The Inuzuka pointed towards Naruto.

"I have eyes, I can see that he's reading. Everyone that isn't blind can see that he's reading. If you look closely at the title of the book he's reading, then you would understand." The class looked at the title of the book that Naruto held. Before anyone could comment, Shikamaru continued talking. "Naruto knows that he's currently dead last in the class right now. So what does he do? He's trying to get better so he doesn't stay there. He's actually taking his shinobi career seriously compared to most of you." His lazy voice was somehow able to silence the crowd. The Nara heir turned towards the Kiba. "Personally I don't understand why you're laughing at Naruto. You're currently the third to dead last in the class, barely ahead of Naruto."

Kiba fumed at the end of Shikamaru's words. "I don't know why you're talking Shikamaru, you're second to dead last." Kiba smirked at his apparent victory.

"You're right." The black haired boy agreed. "But you don't see me boasting about my position nor do you see me belittling Naruto. I'm content with doing minimal effort to pass. You, on the other hand, better watch out before Naruto passes you up." The entire class, including Naruto, was stunned silent after Shikamaru finished talking. Before anything else could happen, Iruka and Mizuki walked into the classroom.

Iruka's brow rose at the quietness of the classroom but ignored it in favor of beginning the day's lecture. Everyone quietly took their seats. Ino and Sakura didn't argue who sat next to Sasuke either. Iruka began today's lecture on the elemental nations. Naruto regained his composure as soon as the teacher started. He flashed a genuine smile instead of his usual fake smile. "Thanks for helping me out Shikamaru."

Shikamaru just smirked at the blond. "What are friends for?" The pineapple head then laid his head down and drifting off into his nap. Chouji held out his chip bag towards Naruto, an Akimichi sign of friendship. Naruto took a chip from the bag and nodded a thank you to Chouji. They both smiled and returned their attentions elsewhere. Chouji went back to eating his chips while Naruto just smiled with the thought of having new friends.

 ***After School***

Naruto rushed to Training Ground 11 as soon as class ended. Class was refreshing as he actually learned something and wasn't kicked out by the teachers. After some searching, he finally found the grounds he was looking for. When he entered the training ground, the blonde saw Mikoto. Training Ground 11 was ordinary compared to the other grounds. It was an empty grass field with nothing surrounding it. On the edges, there was several benches and tables. Instead of a training grounds, it looked more like a park. "Hello Mikoto-san!" The boy shouted as he headed towards the woman.

She returned the greeting with a smile. "How are you, Naruto-kun?"

"I had an awesome day! Today I read the book you gave me in class but people laughed at me." Naruto frowned as he recalled the incident. Mikoto frowned as well but decided to let the jinchuriki continue talking. "My friend Shikamaru told off the people who laughed at me. I didn't even know we were friends! Plus Chouji gave me a chip from his chip bag, which means we're friends too. Oh and Chouji is an Akimichi, just in case you didn't know. I was able to learn something in class and I wasn't even kicked out!" The hyperactive blond rambled on.

Mikoto continued to frown at some of the things she heard but didn't pursue the topic. The woman simply patted his head, glad that he was happy. "Alright Naruto-kun since you're so happy today, how about we go buy you some new clothes?" She suggested.

Naruto looked at her oddly. "What's wrong with my current clothes?" He said as he looked at his favorite outfit.

Mikoto shook her head. "Naruto-kun a good ninja needs to use stealth by blending into the environment. Bright orange basically paints a target on you." She hoped to reason with him.

As much as Naruto liked orange, he knew Mikoto had a valid point. "The problem is that shops don't let me buy anything. If they did let me buy stuff, it's really overpriced. This jumpsuit was the cheapest thing I can buy."

Mikoto stared at the ground impassively but inside was a tornado of emotions. ' _How dare the civilians treat a young child like this!? The amount of hate he's receiving for something he has no control over is ridiculous!'_ The Uchiha woman steeled her emotions as she looked back up at him. "Come Naruto-kun, I know a shop that will sell you things at a fair price." She gestured to the boy.

Naruto stood rooted to his spot. "Mikoto-san while I appreciate it, why are you so nice to me?" The boy asked. He was unused to this level of kindness. First she offered to train him and now she was taking him shopping.

The Uchiha woman frowned once again. _'He's so used to being ignored by the village that he doesn't know how to perceive kindness without being suspicious. Kushina-chan, I regret not being there for your son earlier.'_ Mikoto apologized to her friend, hoping for her forgiveness."Naruto-kun, I'm doing this because I want to." She assured him.

Naruto tilted his head in confusion but decided not to think too much about it. "Well let me go grab my money before we head off." Before Mikoto could protest, Naruto dashed away towards his apartment. After five minutes, he returned and they headed off to the shop. As they walked, villagers and shinobi alike gave them odd looks. They were all wondering what the Uchiha matriarch was doing with the demon brat.

Mikoto ignored their stares as they kept walking. Eventually, they stopped outside a shop called Higarashi's Weapons, where a young brown haired girl was attending the counter. Her hair was styled uniquely into two buns like panda ears.

"Hello Tenten-chan, can you call your parents for me?" Mikoto asked the girl now known as Tenten. The girl bowed before scurrying up the stairs to retrieve her parents. Soon a middle aged man and woman, along with Tenten appeared.

"Welcome to our store Mikoto-sama." The man bowed. The man, who had a muscular build, was wearing blue overalls over his white shirt. His overalls were plastered with soot, giving him a dirty look. Black googles were lifted above his green eyes. His most prominent features were his bald head and brown, neck length beard.

"Kajiya-san [1], I told you not to call me sama. Mikoto-san is fine." She reminded before turning to the middle aged woman. "Good afternoon, Tera-san." The woman known as Tera was dressed elegantly in a kimono. The kimono was black and decorated with a blue flower pattern. It matched the woman's dark blue eyes. Her brown hair was tied in a bun with a pair of silver hair sticks sticking out.

"Hello Mikoto-san, what can we do for you today?" Tera friendly asked.

"Actually, I would like you to help this one here." Mikoto ushered Naruto to the front. Tera and Kajiya instantly recognized who the boy was. The duo stared at Naruto and he began to feel anxious under their gaze.

"What is that monstrosity that you're wearing young man?" Tera said as she looked at the jumpsuit with disgust. "No don't answer, we'll get you new clothes immediately. Tenten, please get my tools." She told her daughter, who went to grab the tools. "Young man, I need you to strip." Naruto looked at her with shook and fear in his eyes. He quickly ran behind Mikoto to hide from the tailor.

"Naruto-kun, it's okay." Mikoto reassured him. "She just wants to measure your body to make sure your new clothes fit." Naruto saw Tera nod in confirmation from behind the Uchiha woman. Trusting Mikoto, he slowly took off his jacket and shirt. Instantly the temperature in the store dropped several degrees and killing intent leaked out from the three adults. Everyone stared at Naruto's body with utter horror.

His body was so skinny that you could see the outlines of his bones. His arms looked like they would snap in half like twigs. His rib cage was in full display while his stomach was caved in. His entire figure looked like it could shatter into pieces if slightly touched. How he was able to look like that and be alive was a complete mystery. Naruto and Tenten shuddered under the killing intent. The boy collapsed onto his knees from the pressure and began holding his body to stop the shaking.

Seeing this, the adults immediately regretted their actions. Mikoto rushed to console Naruto while Tera did the same with Tenten. Kajiya stood there and shook his head in disappointment. The Uchiha woman broke the silence as she released Naruto from the hug. "Naruto-kun what do you eat to look like that?" Mikoto didn't want to know, fearing what he would say. But the information needed to be known so she could properly help him.

"I eat ramen every day and that's pretty much it." Naruto answered sincerely. Mikoto didn't like his response.

"Don't you eat anything other than ramen?" The Uchiha Matriarch asked.

Naruto shook his head in the negative. "I can't buy anything else at stores because they're either too expensive or spoiled." The boy confessed. Mikoto felt rage build up and did her best to suppress it so she wouldn't frighten Naruto again. Hearing his words, Tenten rushed up the stairs and return later with a bag of snacks.

"Here take this. They're mine but you look like you need them more than me." Tenten handed him her private stash of snacks.

"Are you sure I can take this?" Naruto questioned, to which she nodded. "Thanks. I'm Uzumaki Naruto."

"Higarashi Tenten." The girl pointed to herself. "Let's go get you a new set of clothes so I can burn those." Tenten dragged him along, followed by her mother. While waiting on him, Mikoto grabbed a kunai and shuriken set, a first aid kit, several sheets of sealing paper, two bottles of ink, a brush, and a chakra bokken. She dropped all of the items at the cash register. Several minutes later, Naruto came out from the back.

He now wore a dark blue shirt that was covered by an unzipped black jacket that had a large orange Uzumaki swirl on the back. He had on black pants with orange streaks going along the side of each pants leg with matching combat boots. He replaced his old googles with a dark blue variety that hung loosely around his neck. The outfit was honestly a little big on Naruto but hopefully he would grow into it. "Much better Naruto-kun, do you like your new outfit?" Mikoto asked the newly outfitted boy.

"I do but I think it needs more orange." Naruto was pleased but he wanted more of his favorite color. Unfortunately the store didn't seemed to possess many things of the orange variety.

The older women chuckled at the response. "Well I think you look quite handsome in them." Mikoto complimented, causing Naruto to blush. "Tera-san, can we have several sets of these clothes?" She asked the tailor. Tera and Tenten went off to retrieve the supplies while Naruto made his way to the counter.

"What is all this stuff for?" Naruto mused.

"I will explain this stuff to you later after we head to a few other places. Don't worry, you'll need these supplies for later." Mikoto answered while Tera and Tenten returned with the clothes.

Kajiya rang them up at the counter. "Since you're a new customer, I'll make it 40% off the final price. It will come to 40,000 yen in all." Naruto retrieved his overstuffed frog wallet and pulled out the money. Mikoto was shocked at the amount of money that Naruto had but chose not to dwell on it. "Alright I put all your things in this sealing scroll; you just add chakra to take them out. Come see us any time you need anything." The blacksmith said. Naruto nodded and waved goodbye to the Higarashi family.

Tenten quickly gave him a hug, which caused Naruto to blush slightly, and told him to start eating better. He promised that he would eat better after seeing everyone's expressions. Mikoto and Naruto made several more pit stops along the way. Naruto was introduced to the library, where Mikoto required him to read one book every week from the civilian section. As he went to check out the books that Mikoto gave him, the librarian tried to stop him from checking out the book.

Mikoto quickly gave her a glare and promised to tell the Hokage about the transaction, which prompted the librarian to let Naruto check them out. They then went grocery shopping for Naruto, who received the ire from other customers. Quick glares from the Uchiha Matriarch made them cower away in fear. Placing the groceries in a sealing scroll, they headed back to Training Ground 11. The duo sat on a bench and relaxed under the sun.

"So what's all the stuff from Higarashi's for?" Naruto asked as he unsealed the items.

"Well Naruto, a long time ago there was once a village called Uzushiogakure on an island near Kirigakure. That village was lead by the Uzumaki Clan, who were famous for their Fuinjutsu and Kenjutsu. Fearing the Uzumaki, three of the major five elemental nations attacked Uzushiogakure at the same time during the Second Great Ninja War. Unfortunately Konohagakure wasn't fast enough in sending to aid our allies and Uzushiogakure fell. Although in the end they won, the three nations that attacked lost 90% percent of their troops. This allowed Konohagakure to quickly win the war over the other villages. The Uzumaki Clan no longer exists in one place but some of the people were able to flee from the destruction in time. I figured that you would want to continue your Clan's history."

Mikoto finished her history lesson. Naruto soaked up all the information and a grin appeared on his face. Although sad that his Clan was destroyed and scattered, Naruto still held out hope. There was a chance that someone related to him existed. "I've decided!" He announced. "Along with my dream to become Hokage, I'll also look for other Uzumaki members. I'm going to learn this Fuinjutsu stuff and Kenjutsu to honor my Clan."

Mikoto smiled at his proclamation. "I knew you would say that. That was why I got you sealing paper and a chakra bokken, along with introductory Fuinjutsu and Kenjutsu books." She said, holding up each item. "Now Naruto-kun, Fuinjutsu is a _very_ dangerous art, you must promise me that you'll be extremely careful while learning it."

"Yes Mikoto-san, I'll be extremely careful. What is Fuinjutsu anyway?" Naruto asked.

"Fuinjutsu is the art of sealing. It's very complex, so complex that it's considered a dying art. That being said Fuinjutsu is also very helpful, as you can tell just from the sealing scrolls." Mikoto commented. She also told Naruto that there was also a Fuinjutsu expert in Konoha but he wasn't in town at the moment.

"I guess I'll ask Hokage-Jiji about Fuinjutsu when he has time. What is a chakra bokken?" He asked. Naruto knew what the two words meant separately but not when combined.

Mikoto held up the bokken. "If you apply chakra to this bokken, it gets heavier. This is used so you can get used to the weight of a real katana when you manage to get one. It's mainly used for training purposes." She explained.

He then asked Mikoto if she knew any Kenjutsu teachers. The Uchiha shook her head no but said that there were plenty of Kenjutsu users in Konoha so he might meet one someday. While Mikoto was a Kenjutsu user, her style relied on the use of her Sharingan. They then reviewed the book that Naruto read yesterday. They went over the words he didn't understand and reread the more important chapters. "So when am I going to learn a super awesome jutsu?" Naruto asked with sparkles in his eyes.

"Before I answer that, Naruto-kun can you tell me what the three basic Academy jutsus are?" Mikoto asked.

"It's **Kawarimi no Jutsu (** **Body Replacement** **Technique), Bunshin no Jutsu (Clone Technique),** and **Henge no Jutsu (Transformation Technique).** " Naruto answered.

"Well did you know that when I was in active duty, that my alias was **Kawarimi no Megami (Goddess of** **Body Replacement** **)**?" Mikoto said. Although she wasn't exactly proud of the name, she was hoping to get his interest. Naruto stared at her like she was crazy.

"Why are you called that?" The blonde wondered. "There's so many jutsus that are much cooler than the **Kawarimi no Jutsu**."

Mikoto nodded at his question. "You're right Naruto-kun. There are tons of cooler jutsus out there but the **Kawarimi no Jutsu** can save its user. Even if you have a cool jutsu to use, most of them can't help you escape from certain death like **Kawarimi**. That's why I trained until I mastered the technique and was able to escape my enemies a countless number of times. Just because a jutsu isn't as cool as another jutsu doesn't mean it isn't as useful. If you master a low rank jutsu and know how to use it well, isn't that better than using a high rank jutsu at half the power?" She finished.

Naruto processed everything that Mikoto had said. It was true that every ninja knew **Kawarimi no Jutsu** because of how useful it was. "You're right Mikoto-san. I'll master the low rank jutsus first before trying to learn the high rank jutsus."

Mikoto smiled at the young boy. "If you do master the low rank jutsus, the high rank jutsus become easier to learn. Plus, there are so many low rank jutsus out there that you can have a wide variety of different jutsus. You'll truly be the most unpredictable ninja out there." She incited him. Naruto loved the sound of that. He hugged Mikoto as a thank you.

Mikoto could only return the hug she received from her best friend's son. "Okay we're going to start training and I expect you to work hard."

Naruto got up, confidence exuding from his body. "Yes Mikoto-sensei, I will be the best Hokage ever!"

* **Several months later***

The past couple months were some of the happiest Naruto had ever felt in his life. The first time everyone saw his new clothes, they didn't recognize him at first. Shikamaru smirked and said "You never cease to interest me, Naruto." He was also getting closer to his friends, Shikamaru and Chouji. The blonde was even invited to their homes a couple of times. He enjoyed playing shogi and go with Shikamaru even though he always lost. The Nara boy had to go into his thinking pose several times when playing against Naruto due to the blonde's unpredictable nature.

Naruto and Chouji had eating contests and were currently tied. Naruto finally found someone who shared his love of the Food of the Gods. Naruto frequently ate at restaurants that the Akimichi owned because of the good food and the fact that he was welcomed there. The blonde was also made friends with Shino and Hinata. Shino was the heir to the Aburame Clan while Hinata was the heiress of the Hyuuga Clan.

Shino had bushy brown hair and often wore a pair of black sunglasses with his high collared coat. He and Shino became quick friends when Naruto caught a golden Heracles beetle in the forest and brought it to class. The Aburame heir asked if he could have the beetle to see if could crossbreed it with his kikaichu. Naruto obliged since he was going to release it anyway. That was the day that the blonde swore that Shino's eyes shined bright even though he was wearing shades. They got along well despite Naruto's hyper activeness and Shino's stoic nature as they both shared a logical outlook on life.

Hinata had short dark blue hair and was usually very shy. Having Hinata as a friend was weird at first, due to the fact that she constantly fainted whenever they would talk. She fainted less now but still blushed red quite often. Naruto found that they both had a love for reading and even exchanged books from time to time. Naruto actually enjoyed reading a lot more now. He felt that he could immerse himself in a book and felt less lonely when reading.

Tenten would help him with his target throwing and would spar with Naruto on occasion. They often sparred with bokkens, with the girl showing him different styles. Some days they would just relax and talk about their respective classes. Naruto found out that he was held back a year by Jiji because he and Tenten were the same age.

His training was going well if he said so himself. Naruto was no longer the dead last but was still near the lower half of the class. Kiba was furious that he was passed by the former dead last but could no longer say anything about without being called a hypocrite. Iruka enjoyed that the blonde started paying attention during his lectures and was even friendlier towards Naruto. Mikoto trained him in studies, stealth, traps, and the three basic Academy Jutsus. The training in stealth and traps was great for his pranks.

Since he never got caught, like Jiji said, he never got punished for his pranks. The **Kakuremino no Jutsu (Cloak of Invisibility** **Technique)** Mikoto taught himgreatly helped in this endeavor. Even though the whole village knew it was him, no one was able to catch him in the act. ANBU were on high alert after he had pranked their headquarters. All he did was apply itch powder to their uniforms. They even began using special code words for situations involving him. True to his word, he never pranked the Uchiha compound again. He only pranked specific Uchihas that irritated him.

His training in the Academy Jutsus was going well except for the **Bunshin no Jutsu (Clone Technique)**. He was going to have to find a way to conquer it before graduation. He was able to perfectly master his first jutsu, **Nawanuke no Jutsu (Rope Escape Technique),** due to the fact Mikoto-san would make him escape from all kinds of bindings and in all sorts of positions. He questioned the usefulness of this jutsu but Mikoto pointed it out to him.

With this jutsu, he would be able to quickly escape if taken hostage or pretend to be captured so he could be led into enemy headquarters. Once inside, he could escape with valuable information or take down the boss. Naruto then knew any jutsu could be helpful depending on the situation. Now he was working on the **Kawarimi no Jutsu** by replacing himself with objects that were far away.

Although he sparred with Tenten, he was still unable to find a Kenjutsu teacher. This resulted in him only doing practice swings with his bokken. He read about different styles but wasn't sure which one was right for him. Naruto decided to postpone it until he found a Kenjutsu expert.

His Fuinjutsu, on the other hand, was going great. After practicing his calligraphy for nearly two months, he was finally able to write without messing up. The blonde was still on level one, which was identifying simple seals, but he was on his way to level two. The Hokage helped him maintain a steady hand and even suggested writing with his left hand as well. His reasoning was that his right hand might be occupied during battle, so he might need to write seals with his left.

His physical health was getting back to where he should be. He read a book on how to remain in ninja shape after recovering from an injury. Although he wasn't injured, the method helped him regardless. Mikoto gave him cooking lessons so the blonde could be self-sufficient. His new diet allowed him to gain pounds and he started to fill his clothing. That being said, the blonde was still the shortest in his class. He was exercising regularly and was doing lots of running to increase his stamina. Using **Henge (Transform)** , Naruto was now able to buy foods and clothing at normal price.

Naruto marched on towards Training Grounds 11 but noticed several villagers' and ninjas' solemn expressions. Today was a beautiful day with only a few clouds in the air. Why were they so sad? Deciding it would be best to ignore the villagers, Naruto proceeded to the training grounds where Mikoto would be. As soon as he arrived, she was nowhere in sight. ' _Could she be stuck at home? No she would've told me beforehand at least.'_ Naruto pondered when the Hokage came up to him.

"Naruto, I guess you haven't heard yet?" Hiruzen asked despite knowing the answer.

"What are you talking about Jiji?" Naruto was confused by the Hokage's question. "What haven't I heard?" He asked before thinking to himself. ' _The old man's acting weird as well, what's going on?'_

"Follow me Naruto and don't ask anything until we get there." Hiruzen gestured to Naruto. They walked silently the whole way, even the villagers didn't pay him a passing glance. They arrived at the cemetery and Hiruzen stopped at a tombstone. On it read:

 _Here lies Uchiha Mikoto_

 _A loving wife and mother as well as a strong kunoichi of Konohagakure no Sato._

"H-Hey Jiji, this i-is just a prank r-right? It's probably punishment for all the pranks I did. I'm sorry for whatever I did but this is going too far. I mean I just saw Mikoto-san yesterday. There's no way she's dead. She looked just fine yesterday." Naruto stuttered over his words. He knew it was a lie, it had to be.

"Naruto, yesterday night Uchiha Itachi murdered everybody in the Uchiha Clan except for Uchiha Sasuke. We have no idea why he did it but we'll ask Sasuke when he wakes up from his comatose state. I'm sorry to say that this isn't a prank." The Hokage said softly, not wanting to hurt his surrogate grandson. Naruto collapsed onto the ground, his entire world shattering.

' _There's no way Itachi-nii would do something like that. He's one the kindest people I know. Why would he kill everyone, especially his mother?'_ Naruto was at lost for words. _'What was he trying to achieve? I-I don't understand what's going on anymore.'_ Naruto's tears escaped his eyes and fell on the ground.

Inside Hiruzen was filled with guilt. Thanks to his incompetence, Danzo was able to order Itachi to kill every single Uchiha to prevent the clan from staging a coup d'état. He deemed himself guilty for the lives of all that died and the three affected most by their deaths. Itachi would be forced to live on the run, be pursued by hunter-nins, and deal with the turmoil that came from killing his clan.

Sasuke would live thinking that he was the 'last loyal Uchiha' and be faced with loneliness that he had never experience before. He would also question why Itachi left him alive and possibly seek out revenge against his brother. Naruto lost his mother and older brother figure in a single night. Unlike Sasuke, he had dealt with loneliness before but that didn't make it any less difficult. Hiruzen noticed that Naruto had begun to truly smile at people since Mikoto came into his life.

The Sandaime knelt down and hugged his surrogate grandson, who was crying profusely. The Hokage cursed his inability to do anything right. He had failed Minato, Kushina, Naruto, and now the entire Uchiha Clan. Resolving to change, a fire was born anew within Hiruzen. He wouldn't fail no one else and Danzo would come to know and fear why he was known as the **Shinobi no Kami (God of Shinobi)**.

[1] Kajiya means blacksmith while Tera means tailor.


	3. Chapter 3

**A.N.** **1**

I've finally decided on the pairings for this story and it'll be a Naruto x Small Harem. I know that a lot of people don't like harem but I like the idea of Naruto having a small group of girls that care about him. The harem will be 4 girls max. One spot is already filled by *drumrolls* femHaku! In canon, Haku was a major influence on Naruto. To this day, I refuse to believe Haku was a boy in canon. So I made Haku a girl and she will be important in this story as well.

There are three more spots open for the rest of the harem. I'll let the readers vote on which girl they want by poll and/or reviews. The poll will be displayed on my profile. You'll be allowed two choices so you have a total of four votes. I'll stop counting the votes, three chapters from now. Meaning, I'll announce the results when Chapter 6 is out. Here's the list and if you see a female that you want but isn't there, they most likely will play another role in the story.

Anko Mitarashi  
Fu  
Hana Inuzuka  
Karui  
Kin Tsuchi  
Konan  
Kurotsuchi  
Mabui  
Mei Terumi  
Samui  
Tenten Higarashi  
Yugito

This chapter was much longer than it was supposed to be. I was gunning for the Genin exams but it just didn't work out that way. Oh well more content for the next chapter(s). Reviews will be answered at the bottom of the chapter. Well enough talking, onto the next chapter!

 **A.N.** **2**

This chapter has been edited as 12/29/15. I've added a final message from Mikoto to Naruto. Naruto will receive the note along with the wakizashi.

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.

"Talking"

' _Thoughts'_

 **Jutsu/Biju**

 **' _Biju Thoughts_ '**

 **Chapter 3: Letting the fox out of the Bag**

Two weeks had passed since the Uchiha Massacre and life in Konohagakure had slowly returned to normalcy. Uchiha Itachi was placed in the bingo book as an S-Class missing ninja for massacring the Uchiha Clan. Uchiha Sasuke was placed under the care of the elders Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura until he was sixteen or became a Genin. He was questioned about Itachi and the massacre as soon as he woke up.

Sasuke responded with fits of anger when Itachi's name was brought up. Many civilians deemed it taboo to speak of Itachi's name in front of Sasuke when they heard how he reacted. Sasuke was readmitted into the Academy as soon as he was deemed healthy. During his recovery, his fan club grew to insane proportions. Fan girls and fan boys were hoping to help the 'tragic hero' and constantly hounded him with gifts. The boy, however, paid them no attention and trained constantly when he wasn't attending classes.

Our protagonist hadn't been attending class. He remained locked up in his room and only came out when summoned by the Hokage. Hiruzen was worried about his surrogate grandson and would often take him out to eat ramen. Naruto would eat a single bowl of ramen, thank the Hokage, and return home. Ayame and Teuchi were worried sick about their favorite customer.

Naruto woke up from his slumber. To him, time seemed still and nothing was worth getting up for. He missed talking to Itachi and training with Mikoto. ' _Why did Itachi-nii do it? I don't believe it was to test his powers like the villagers are saying. Itachi-nii is too kind for that. There's no way he was faking all of that. He loved Konoha as much as the next person. He would do anything for Konoha...'_ Naruto tried to decipher Itachi's actions but was coming up blank.

A light knock came from his door and Naruto grudgingly got up to open the door for the Sandaime. Except the person behind the door wasn't the Hokage, but his lazy Nara friend. "Hey Shikamaru, what are you doing here?" The blonde boy asked. Shikamaru said nothing while his eyes were scanning Naruto.

"Mom told me to come get you for dinner at our place, you troublesome blond." The black haired boy sighed at his friend. This was the first time he had seen the blonde in two weeks but Naruto looked like a shell of himself.

Naruto's clothes were ruffled and he had major bags under his eyes. Most likely from the lack of sleep and crying, seeing as his eyes were still red. "Sorry Shika, tell your mom that I'll come another time." The blonde refused the offer and was going to close the door until a hand stopped it.

"Naruto, you don't understand what that troublesome woman would do to me if I don't bring you. Look, I know you don't want to go but do it as a favor for me?" Shikamaru pleaded.

Naruto sighed and nodded. He told Shikamaru to wait for him to get dressed. In about fifteen minutes, the duo headed towards the Nara Compound. On their way there, villagers directed their scorn at the young jinchuriki. ' _At least that's one thing that won't change anytime soon. Hopefully Shikamaru won't notice but I doubt it. He's way too_ _perceptive_ _not to.'_ Naruto thought as he walked. Like the blond thought, Shikamaru did notice that their glares were directed to his friend.

' _Those glares always appear whenever I'm with Naruto. Is it because of the pranks that he did? No, even a prank couldn't produce a look like that. Does it have something to do with the graffiti on his apartment wall? They were calling him a demon and telling him to die. Plus, all the adults seem to know something our generation doesn't. As always everything with Naruto is so troublesome.'_ Shikamaru thoughts ceased as the duo arrived at the compound.

Shikamaru directed Naruto to the backyard of the main house. "Surprise!" Multiple voices rang out as soon as Naruto came into view. Naruto stood there shocked at the people he saw. He saw his friends and most of their parents along with Ayame, Teuchi, the Hokage, and Iruka. He looked up to see a banner that read: Happy 10th Birthday Naruto! The boy had completely forgotten all about his birthday. Today was October the 10th, his birthday as well as the day the Kyuubi attacked Konoha. It was also the day the Yondaime Hokage died killing the Kyuubi.

A minute passed and no reaction came from Naruto. A slap hit the back of his head, releasing him from his stupor. He looked at Shikamaru who was giving a wordless look that said, ' _Well say something, you troublesome blond.'_ Naruto gave a wide grin and shouted his thanks for everyone to hear. His friends and Ino ran up to him and congratulated him on getting a year older. They even told him they got him presents! Naruto never had a birthday party or got presents before.

He had no idea what to do so he thanked them again. The party went into full swing and Naruto quickly forgot the sadness that had plagued him for the last two weeks. Teuchi and Ayame gave him a personalized ramen bowl that was decorated with fishcakes before they had to leave to open up the shop. Hiruzen wished him a happy birthday and told Naruto to meet him in his office for his present before he headed home. The blonde boy was happy that he was able to spend his birthday with people other than just the Sandaime.

He ate lots of cake and ice cream and was hyperactive the entire time, much to the annoyance of the adults. Finally it was time to open to open the rest of the presents. Ino was the first to give her present. It was a purple hyacinth in a pot. "It means forgiveness in flower language. I hope you can forgive me for being mean to you all of these years." She apologized.

Naruto looked at her and smiled. "It's okay Ino, how about we become friends?"

Ino nodded and gave her own smile. "I would like that very much Naruto."

Inoichi and Noriko [1] Yamanaka nodded their heads, although for different reasons. The two Yamanaka were wearing yellow yukata with a purple flower design. Noriko had her brown hair tied in a bun with chopsticks holding it in place. Noriko was happy that her daughter gained a friend while Inoichi was happy that nothing was going on between Naruto and his princess. Shikaku and Choza shook their heads at their friend's obvious happiness.

Iruka gave Naruto a stack of slips. "I wasn't sure what to get you." The scarred face Chunin admitted. The blonde boy opened the stacks to reveal a coupon for a free bowl at Ichiraku's Ramen. "There's 50 slips in there. Anymore and you'll clean out my wallet." Iruka chuckled as Naruto went airborne to give him a hug.

"Thank you Iruka-sensei." The jinchuriki thanked his instructor.

Chouji gave him a one day, all you can eat, pass at any Akimichi restaurant of his choosing. "You better tell your chefs to be ready because we're going to have an eating contest soon." Naruto challenged his big boned friend.

"You're going down! This will break our tie." Chouji shouted back. Choza and Chiharu [1] Akimichi grew pale and were rapidly making plans to gather extra supplies. The two Akimichi were wearing white yukatas that was decorated with red swirls, the Akimichi symbol. Chiharu's short black hair had a red flower clipped on.

Hinata gave him the latest book to in the Doki Doki series. The series was immensely popular with the female population and rivaled the Icha Icha series in sales. "Thanks Hinata, I didn't know a new book had come out." He thanked her. Naruto didn't understand the series much but he didn't want to make Hinata sad. It also gave them a topic to talk about.

"Ano, it came out a week ago." Hinata said while she twirled her fingers. That clicked something within Naruto's head. While he was inside the sanctuary of his apartment, many things happened that he didn't know about. "I h-hope you like your p-present Naruto." She stuttered. Hinata didn't notice Naruto's change in expression.

Naruto put his mask on once again and smiled at Hinata. "Thanks Hinata, we'll talk about it after I finish reading it." The jinchuriki thanked her once more. Naruto didn't have time to dwell on his thoughts as Shino came up to him.

"Naruto-san, I once again wish to congratulate you on your day of birth. Before I give you your present, I shall inform you about the status of the golden Hercules beetle that you gave me. The beetle and my kikaichu were able produce a new breed of insect." The Aburame heir said with no change in his voice. Shino held out his index finger and out came a larger kikaichu that had a golden shell. Instantly the women fled from the two boys. Naruto noticed a slight tick mark forming on Shino's head.

"Shino, first off, I told you to call me Naruto. Secondly, isn't it really hard to assimilate with new insects? Thirdly, what does it do? Finally, that's so cool! Glad I was able to help you out Shino." The blond commented. Naruto saw Shino revert back to his stoic state, although he seemed happier now. The blonde wasn't sure if he was right because no one could really tell an Aburame's expressions.

"Yes, you did tell me to call you without honorifics and I will remember it the next time we speak. It is indeed difficult to assimilate with a new species but these are the offspring my own kikaichu. That allowed the process to be easier than normally. I have yet to discover their abilities but regardless, a new species is an exciting event in my clan." Shino answered.

Everyone else had a single thought, ' _Of course your clan would get excited about bugs.'_

"This is the present that I wish to give you." Shino grabbed a ring and handed it to Naruto. "This ring is given to the allies of the Aburame Clan. Inside the ring is the pheromone of a female kikaichu that can be released by applying chakra to it. When it is released, insects will surround you and form a cocoon to protect you from harm. While it is not an effective defense, it should be able to survive a single attack." The shades-wearing boy explained.

Naruto stared at the ring and Shino wide eyed. The ring was white with an engraving of a black kikaichu on it. "Are you sure you want to give this to me? I mean this is obviously important." The jinchuriki was unsure if he could accept this present.

"Naruto, not only did you help me discover a new species, but you have never once treated me or my clan like freaks. That is more than enough for me to trust you. If you decline, that means you don't deem my clan as worthy allies." Shino said with no emotion.

Naruto frowned at Shino's comment. "Of course I think your clan as worthy allies. I'll gladly accept this ring, thank you Shino." Naruto said as he slipped the ring onto his middle finger on his left hand. Shino nodded as well as his father. Shibi approved of his son's choice and was glad that he was able to find a trustworthy friend. Shibi was present with his normal Jonin outfit, the typical Aburame attire.

Tenten was next to give Naruto his present. "Well I was actually planning to give you something else, but dad told me not to. He says to visit him tomorrow for something I can't tell you." She told him. Naruto was confused by her words but allowed her to continue nonetheless. "Anyway, I got you this book, since I know you're almost finished with level one." Tenten said as she revealed a book titled, 'Fuinjutsu level two: Try not to blow yourself up'.

Naruto was ecstatic about this present since he no longer needed to wait until he was a Genin to borrow a copy from the library. He hugged Tenten tightly as a thank you. This set off a chain of reactions from everyone. Tenten flushed red from being hugged by a boy in public. Hinata was paralyzed and extremely jealous that she wasn't in Tenten's position. Ino's eyes had gained a strange gleam. The younger boys knew Naruto was just being friendly. The adults, on the other hand, were snickering at the two kids.

Naruto pulled back and tilted his head in confusion. Suddenly he remembered something from the Doki Doki series. Girls often blushed when hugged by boys in public or by someone they like. Naruto didn't know which one Tenten was blushing about so he did what boys his age did. He proceeded to blush the color of a ripe tomato. A cough from Shikamaru composed the two 10 year olds. Thanking Tenten once again and promising to visit tomorrow, he turned to the Naras.

"Thank you for allowing my birthday party to be here, Shikaku-san and Yoshino-san." Naruto bowed to the husband and wife. The two Naras were wearing plain black yukatas. Yoshino had argued with her husband to get a more decorative yukata but he was too lazy to choose. The Nara woman had her long brown hair hang straight instead of up in the usual ponytail.

Yoshino ran up to him and pulled him into a motherly hug. "You know you're always welcome here Naru-chan." She teased.

"Yoshino-san, don't call me that, it's embarrassing." He sent the male Naras a look, requesting help. They looked away, whistling as if they didn't know what was going on.

' _Sorry Naruto, she's just too troublesome to deal with.'_ The male Naras thought collectively. Shikaku and Shikamaru didn't want to deal with the wrath of the woman. Naruto looked betrayed and he cursed his fate.

"Anyway Shikamaru also brought you a present." Yoshino said as she let him go, much to Naruto's relief.

"I don't have a present to give Naruto." Shikamaru said dryly.

"What do you mean, you didn't get one of your best friends a present?" The Nara matriarch fumed as she pulled Shikamaru by the ear.

"It was too troublesome to get him a present." Shikamaru remarked as he rubbed his sore ear. Naruto frowned that one of his best friends thought it was too troublesome to get him a present. The blonde smiled at Shikamaru nonetheless since Shikamaru's friendship was a good enough gift.

"It's alright Shika, I'll kick your ass in shoji next time!" Naruto proclaimed.

Shikamaru smirked at Naruto. "I can't wait for that day to come." Although Yoshino was mad at her son, she knew nothing could be done about it. The party continued on into the evening. Naruto helped clean up and once again thanked the Naras before heading off to the Hokage Tower.

Naruto knocked on the door and was given permission to come in. Inside his grandfather figure was doing paperwork yet again. "Oh happy birthday my boy and it's good to see you again." Hiruzen came and gave Naruto a hug before retreating back to his desk. Naruto sat on a chair in front of the desk and waited for the Sandaime. Hiruzen dismissed the ANBU from their posts and activated the privacy seals. Before the Hokage could speak, a blur from the corner of the room smashed into the bookcase.

By the bookcase was a man with long white hair and a gigantic scroll on his back holding up an ANBU member with a blank mask by the neck. The white haired man was Jiraiya of the Sannin and the author of Naruto's Fuinjutsu books. He had on a green kimono shirt with matching pants. A sleeveless red haori was worn over his shirt. On his forehead was a hitai-ate with the word 'oil' instead of the usual leaf symbol. Jiraiya snapped the ANBU's neck in a quick fashion. "Good thing I was in the room sensei or we would've been spied on." The body was sealed into a scroll of Jiraiya's and given to an ANBU member that had returned when Hiruzen deactivated his privacy seals. After the ANBU left, the Jiraiya activated his own seals. "Just in case sensei. We don't want the stuff we're talking about coming out of this room."

Naruto sat there confused on what was going on. The toad sage then took a seat next to Naruto. "Happy Birthday, Gaki." Jiraiya told Naruto.

"Thanks Jiraiya-sama but do I know you?" Naruto asked, which made Jiraiya laugh in amusement.

"So you know about the great Jiraiya-sama." The Sannin puffed out his chest. "But your questions will be answered soon." Jiraiya said since they had more pressing matters.

The Hokage coughed to get the two's attention. "Naruto, I've been hiding a lot of things from you and I want to make it up to you by telling the truth. I know you have a lot of questions and I'll answer them but don't interrupt me until I've finished talking. What I'm about to tell you doesn't leave this room, understand?" Hiruzen spoke seriously to get his word across. Naruto nodded in agreement and kept his silence.

Hiruzen took a long drag from his pipe before he spoke. "I'm sure you're wondering why the villagers hated you since the day you were born. On the day you were born, the Kyuubi no Yoko attacked Konohagakure. It tore the village apart with ease and was about to release its strongest attack on the village. Luckily, the Yondaime was able to teleport the beast away from the village. In the history books, it says that the Yondaime defeated the Kyuubi. That's not the truth and I was the one who fabricated it. The Kyuubi isn't actually alive, it's simply a ball of chakra or a Biju. Since it isn't alive, it cannot be killed. The Yondaime was forced to seal the beast into a newborn baby in exchanged for his life. The baby he put the Kyuubi in was you Naruto. You're the jinchuriki of the Kyuubi no Yoko." The Sandaime concluded.

To say that Naruto was stunned, was a massive understatement. His entire core was shell shocked from the news and he could see why the villagers glared at him. _They think I'm the Kyuubi, the same beast that killed all of their loved ones. Are they right? Am I the Kyuubi that terrorized Konoha?'_ His thoughts were interrupted by Jiraiya.

"I've heard that you're learning Fuinjutsu so you should know the difference between a scroll and a kunai." Jiraiya stated. "In this case, you're a jinchuriki and serves as the scroll to the Kyuubi's kunai."

Naruto slowly nodded as he knew the difference but wasn't fully convinced. "What's a jinchuriki and is the seal secure?"

Hiruzen decided to answer his question. "A jinchuriki is a human sacrifice made to hold a Biju. Including you, there are 8 other jinchurikis spread out throughout the entire elemental nations. Of all the seals, yours is the most secure since the Yondaime was a level 10 Fuinjutsu master."

Naruto's eyes widen over the fact that there were others like him. Were they hated and scorned just as he was? "Are all jinchuriki treated this way and why do the villagers attack me if I'm the one keeping the beast contained?" Naruto said calmly but there was a hint of anger in his voice. If the villagers acted this way towards him, then the others probably had the same or worse treatment.

"A jinchuriki's identity is usually kept hidden from the other elemental countries because they're often targeted for kidnap and assassination. The only known jinchurikis are Roshi and Han of Iwagakure, Yagura of Kirigakure, and Kirabi of Kumogakure. Not much is known about Roshi and Han except that they fought in the Third Great Shinobi War. Yagura is the Mizukage of Kirigakure and Kirabi is viewed as a hero in his village because of his actions in the third war." Jiraiya said to assure Naruto that not all jinchuriki were treated badly. He did leave out the fact that Yagura was trying to commit genocide against bloodline users.

Hiruzen decided to answer the second question. "Most villagers and even some ninja don't understand how seals work. As you know, Fuinjutsu is a very complex art that's slowly dying out because not many people can understand it. They cannot fathom how a bunch of lines of ink can possibly hold back a beast such as the Kyuubi. I know I cannot possibly tell you to forgive them after all they've done to you."

"It is okay, Jiji. I can sort of understand why they feel the way they do. They simply fear what they don't understand. Who all knows about my status?" Naruto asked. He was worried that everyone knew about him.

"Only the adults should know about your status as a jinchuriki since some shinobi saw the Yondaime seal the Kyuubi in you. Word got around before I was able to make a law that prohibited anyone to talk about your status, punishable by execution. The younger generation doesn't know about it." Hiruzen explained and he saw the relief that came to Naruto's face.

"Thank you for finally telling me and trusting me enough with this secret." Naruto stood up and bowed deeply.

Hiruzen stood up and sat on the floor in front of Naruto. He bowed with his head on the floor. "Naruto after everything I've done to you, yet you still thank me. I don't deserve your thanks as I'm a failure as your grandfather." The Sandaime said. Hiruzen felt hands lifting his head and the same hands wrapping around his torso.

"Jiji, don't ever say that! I don't care what anyone else says. You're the best grandfather in the world and I can't be any happier." Naruto reproached. The grandfather and grandson wept in each other arms. Both were feeling relief for different reasons but they were happy to have one another. Jiraiya turned away from the scene to give the two some privacy while also wiping his own manly tears away. What would his fans say if they caught him crying over such a sappy scene?

They finally released each other and went back to their respective seats. Smiles graced the faces of the males. But Hiruzen soon sported a frown. "As you now know Naruto, a lot of responsibility has been placed on your shoulders. I'm confident that you can handle it." The Hokage said with pride evident in his voice.

"Jiji, I know I'm not allowed to tell anyone about this but can I tell Shikamaru and Shino? They're my best friends and I trust them not to tell anyone." Naruto pleaded to his grandfather.

Hiruzen pondered his surrogate grandson's words. The toad sage answered for him. "I think it'll be fine for him to tell them sensei. They don't seem to be the type to judge. If the gaki believes that they're trustworthy, why not believe in his choice of friends?" Jiraiya proposed. The Hokage nodded a yes but told Naruto it had to be somewhere private.

"Thank you Jiji, is there anything else you need from me?" The blonde asked.

Hiruzen nodded. "I have another secret I'm keeping from you Naruto and it's regarding the identity of your parents. I, however, cannot tell you their identities until you reach the rank of Chunin because of certain reasons. Please try to understand that we're doing this for your own good." The Hokage told the blonde.

Naruto had only one thought on his mind. "Did they, my parents, love me?" He asked, hopeful of a good answer.

Hiruzen's smile was one of remembrance. "They loved you more than anything else. You were their treasure and they regret not being here to see you grow up. I know if they were here, they would be really proud of you." The Hokage replied.

Naruto knew that meant they were dead but he still smiled as his parents loved him. "Thank you Jiji. That should be everything, I presume?" Naruto asked but the Hokage pointed to his student.

"I have a present to give you as well, gaki. The present is a godfather, or more specifically, me!" Jiraiya shouted as he struck a pose. "Your parents made me your godfather before you were born." Naruto's eyes widen at Jiraiya's words and quickly narrowed in rage. The young boy got up from his seat and kicked Jiraiya in the gut before following with an uppercut to the chin. Naruto took out his bokken from its seal and applied chakra to it, making it the heaviest he could possibly handle. He dashed and did a side swipe to hit Jiraiya on the side.

Naruto huffed and puffed from the exertion of his actions. "Where were you for the past 9 years!? I had no one that cared about me except for Jiji, Ayame-neesan, Teuchi-san, and Iruka-sensei for 8 years. I was beaten, abused, spitted on, ignored or glared at by the villagers every day of my life. My life finally got better when Mikoto-san and Itachi-nii came into my life last year. Slowly I started to make friends and found people that cared about me. Where were you when I desperately needed someone when Mikoto-san died two weeks ago!? I know I'm just a brat to you but couldn't you have been in my life just for an hour? I understand that you have lots of duties to perform as a Sannin but was it that hard to tell me you existed? I'm sorry but I don't want to see your face anymore today." Naruto ranted all of his frustrations. The boy stormed out the room and slammed the door, leaving a down-cast Jiraiya.

Hiruzen watched his student. "Why didn't you dodge his attacks?" The Hokage inquired.

Jiraiya slowly got up from the floor and sat down on the chair once more. "I deserved that beating from him." The toad sage replied softly. His hand moved to his side to soothe the pain.

"Just give him some time to breathe. He doesn't hate you but it'll take him time to open up to you." Hiruzen said, trying to cheer up his student the best he can. "In other news, there's another reason I called you back here besides the fact that it's Naruto's birthday. I want you to bring Tsunade back to Konoha."

"Sensei, she left here 17 years ago and I don't think anything is going to bring her back." The white haired man commented. Jiraiya knew that bringing back his teammate was an extremely difficult task, if not impossible.

"Tell her that I'll pay her debts with my finances and that I'll allow for a medic-nin program to be made. If she still refuses, she'll be stripped of her rights as a Sannin and will be declared as a missing-nin." Hiruzen responded. "Also, tell her that Naruto is alive." He added nonchalantly.

Jiraiya slammed his hands onto the desk. "Are you trying to get me killed Sarutobi-sensei!? I was already going to get pummeled because of the threat. Now I'm going to be killed, revived, and killed again when I tell her about Naruto! Tsunade was close with Kushina before she left with the village with Shizune. She believes that Naruto died along with his parents. If she found out that we've been hiding him from her, we'll essentially be signing our death sentences!" The toad sage shouted. Being on the receiving end of Tsunade's punches for years, Jiraiya knew how deadly the Slug Princess was.

Hiruzen took a drag from his pipe. "Trust me, I know what will happen but I need her here when I finally take down Danzo."

Jiraiya sat down after that statement. "So you're finally going to kill that old goat. It's about time. I never did like him even though he's helping Konoha, in his own way."

Hiruzen nodded. "I know that he won't be an easy person to take down so I'll need someone here, in case I fall in battle. That doesn't mean I plan on dying but I'm not in the shape I used to be."

"Alright old man, I'll bring Tsunade back with me to Konoha even if she's the one dragging my lifeless body through the gates. I hope Naruto talks to me when I come back." The Sannin finished. Jiraiya left the building through the window, leaving Hiruzen all alone.

The Hokage stared at a picture of the Yondaime. "I'll correct my mistakes Minato, even it costs me my life." He glanced at his eternal enemy on his desk. "Although I wished you had told me how to defeat paperwork before you died." Hiruzen groaned as he went back to stamping papers into the night.

 ***The Next Day***

Naruto was jogging around the town in the early morning hours. He was thinking about the conversation he had with the Hokage and Jiraiya. The Sandaime had finally told him why he was hated by the villagers. The boy felt like a burden was removed from his shoulders, even though it was now in his stomach. Although he was mad at Jiraiya, he needed to be civilized or at least let his godfather explain his reasons the next time he saw him.

Naruto was out of breath by the time he came back to his apartment. Not exercising for two weeks really drained his stamina. He had only completed one lap around Konoha before retiring. He remembered that Tenten said her father wanted him to come to the store today. Deciding to tell his friends about the Kyuubi later, Naruto showered and headed towards Higarashi Weapons.

Even though people were only beginning to wake up to start their day, the store was already open. "Good morning, Kajiya-san." Naruto waved to the older man.

"Good morning to you Naruto-kun." Tenten's father greeted in return. "Why are you up this early? Even Tenten and Tera are still in bed." Kajiya asked the now 10 year old.

"I was out training when I remembered that Tenten told me to come see you today." Naruto explained.

"Well give me a minute and I'll go get your gift." The blacksmith responded. As Kajiya went to the back to retrieve Naruto's gift, a sickly man walked into the store. The man's brown hair was covered by a blue bandana where his hitai-ate was located. He was wearing blue standard shinobi clothes along with a green flak jacket. The thing that caught Naruto's eye was the dark bags under the man's eyes.

"Excuse me *cough* is Kajiya-san *cough* here?" The sick man asked Naruto.

"Yeah he's in the back, are you ok?" The blonde boy asked as the person coughed again. "Do you need someone to take you to the hospital?" Naruto was honestly worried as the man who looked like he was going to collapse any second.

"No I'm fine, thank you. I have a *cough* problem because I breathed in some toxic gas on a mission. Since it was never fully cured, I was left with a *cough* problem." The shinobi explained.

Kajiya came back with a wakizashi and saw the man. "Good morning Hayate-san, what can I do for you today?" The bald blacksmith asked. The man now known as Hayate replied.

"Good morning Kajiya-san. *cough* I was wondering if you can fix my katana for me. I chipped it during my last mission." Hayate requested. Kajiya nodded while Naruto looked at Hayate.

"Excuse me, do you practice Kenjutsu?" Naruto asked with hope in his words.

Hayate saw that he was being addressed and nodded. "I'm one of the Kenjutsu masters in Konoha, *cough* if I say so myself."

Naruto smiled at finding a potential teacher. "I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Uzumaki Naruto and I'm actually looking for a Kenjutsu teacher." The boy introduced himself.

Hayate smiled as well. "My name is Gekko Hayate and it's nice to see that someone young *cough* is interested in Kenjutsu. I would be interested in teaching you but you don't seem to have a blade." The Kenjutsu user replied. Kajiya interrupted the two.

"Actually he does have one, this one right here." Kajiya said as he held up a black wakizashi. "This wakizashi is yours Naruto-kun. This blade once belonged to Mikoto-san and she wished for me to give it to you on your birthday. I hope you accept it." He gave the blade to Naruto. The jinchuriki was amazed as the sheath was a pure black that seemed to absorb any light that touched it. The handle was black with a small orange Uzumaki swirl on it. There was an odd ring on pommel of the handle. "I see you've noticed the ring. Go ahead and pull on it." Kajiya commented. Naruto did as told and pulled the ring. When he pulled on it, a small kunai came out of the handle. "That's one of the improvements I've made to the blade. If you're in a pinch, the kunai should be able to at least surprise your enemies."

Naruto returned the kunai to its place and pulled the blade from its sheath. The wakizashi was a medium length blade. The metal was a pristine white like it was brand new and the blade itself was light. Naruto took a few swings with his new blade. The movements were fluid and effortless like the blade was made for him. "I see you like it. Mikoto-san asked that I make her katana into a wakizashi for you because it suited you more." Kajiya smiled at the little blond. "She also told me to hand this to you, in case, she didn't personally give you the wakizashi." The blacksmith handed the boy a scroll.

The blonde boy placed the blade on the counter as he received the scroll. When he tried to open it, the scroll resisted the force. "I *cough* believe you need to pump chakra in it to open it." Hayate advised when he saw that Naruto was having trouble. The boy did as he was told and pumped chakra into it. As Hayate had stated, the scroll opened.

 _Dear Naruto,_

 _If you've received this scroll then that means I'm gone from this world. My death must have been unexpected for you. You must have plenty of questions that you want answers to. I'll do my best as your sensei to provide you with those answers. The question you're most likely wondering is why I left a scroll with Kajiya-san in advance. The reason for this is because I knew that I didn't have long to live. For reasons I won't disclose, my death would help maintain peace in Konoha. You might not understand but you'll need to accept it._

 _But even though I know I'll die, I'm filled with regret. You once asked me why I was so kind to you. The answer I gave you was a half-lie. While it was true I was kind to you out of my own free will, the real reason was because I was best friends with your mother. The Hokage has requested that I don't reveal her identity because of certain reasons but that won't stop me from describing her to you. She was the most hardheaded and quick tempered person I've ever known. But at the same time, she was also the most loving and friendliest person I've ever met. Her death, along with your father's, impacted me greatly._

 _I fell into depression, knowing that a person I loved was gone from the world. I secluded myself from the world outside of the Uchiha Compound. My world brighten it up when a certain someone decided to graffiti the compound. I watched you rigorously clean up and I couldn't help but think that you deserved a reward for your efforts. That was our first meeting and that was when I noticed that you were my best friend's son. I offered to train you in order to atone for all the years I've not noticed you._

 _I expected that we would bond over time. What I didn't expect was to see how you were treated by the village. It was as if everyone blamed you for everything that went wrong in their lives. Yet you still turned out to be the sweetest and most forgiving person in the world. I was in awe at how you continued to go on smiling even with all the obstacles placed in your life. The time we spent together was some of the happiest in my life. You brought joy back into my life._

 _Still the thing that I'll regret the most is that I'll leave my sons without a mother. Itachi won't show it outwardly but I know he's one of the most caring people in the world. He'll regret it every day of his life for not finding a way to prevent my death. Sasuke will be left alone in the world, forced to fend for himself. My baby boy will secluded himself from the world, resenting his own weakness._

 _And my last son will think that the world was set against him, when that's the farthest thing from the truth. He has people that care about him and love him almost as much as I do. Even with my death, they'll help him regain his smile. Even as he reads this scroll, he knows that he isn't alone. That's why Naruto, my son, I want you to continue to smile. I want you to know that I love you with all of my heart._

 _My tears refuse to dry as I write this. I wish I could spend more days with my boys. I wish that I had entered your life earlier. I wish I was still alive to watch my three boys grow up to be fine young men. Wishes that I know that won't come true. Still I'm not worried because I know that my sons will do just fine without me. On the off chance that I'm wrong, Naruto I want you to be there for Itachi and Sasuke. Out of the three of them, you're the strongest one. You'll be able to move on from this and become stronger. While it's selfish of me to place the responsibility on your shoulders, I believe you can do it._

 _The wakizashi I've gifted you is your birthday present. It was originally my katana but I believe that a wakizashi would be a better fit for you. Use the wakizashi to accomplish all your dreams. It saddens me that this will be my last present to you. Naruto, please stay strong. Know that I will always love you and that I couldn't ask for a better son._

 _Your loving mother, Uchiha Mikoto._

As Naruto finished reading the note, he failed to notice that tears were running down his cheeks. The streams of liquid refused to stop and they began falling onto the scroll. Not wanting to damage the scroll, the boy quickly wiped away his tears. He rolled up the scroll and looked up. Naruto noticed that Hayate and Kajiya was looking away from him, most likely to give him some privacy. Grabbing the blade that Mikoto once used, a sad smile graced his face. _'Even after death, you still watch out for me. I'll treasure this wakizashi and use it to fulfill my dreams. And I promise that I'll be there for Itachi and Sasuke.'_ Naruto thought as his resolve strengthened.

"What are you going to name your blade?" Hayate asked as he turned towards the blond.

Naruto looked at Kajiya. "Did this blade have a name?" The boy asked.

Kajiya scratched his beard and pondered. "I don't believe Mikoto-san ever gave it a name. Either that or she never told me its name. You should name it." The blacksmith suggested.

Naruto looked at the blade and instantly found a worthy name. "This wakizashi will now be called **Jogi no Kotoba (Words of a Ruler)** [2] in honor of Mikoto-san." The boy said. Both males smiled at the name.

"I think that's an excellent name Naruto." Kajiya commented.

"Well it looks like you have a blade now Naruto." A lady with long purple hair commented as she came into the store. The woman was wearing a dark green variety of shinobi clothes. On her arms were black sleeves that reached up near her shoulder. She had white wraps on her left leg as well as her feet. Like Hayate, she also had a green flak jacket.

"Yugao-chan *cough* sorry it took so long, I was in here talking." Hayate apologized to the woman. To Naruto, she seemed oddly familiar like he had seen her before.

Looking at her long purple hair, he instantly recognized her. "Cat-san, is that you?" Naruto asked, remembering the Cat ANBU that helped him when he was little. Yugao smiled and nodded her head.

"Naruto that's my name when I'm in my ANBU uniform, my name otherwise is Uzuki Yugao." Yugao explained to Naruto.

Naruto nodded before turning to Hayate. "Hayate-san can you teach me Kenjutsu?" The blonde asked politely.

Hayate thought for a moment as he handed his katana to Kajiya. "Sure but only if you pass my test." The Tokubetsu Jonin replied. "You'll spar with Yugao-chan while showing me your skills. You don't need to win, just show me *cough* that I won't regret training you."

Yugao put a hand on her hip like she was annoyed. "Don't I have a say in this?" The ANBU woman wondered aloud. Hayate promised that he'll make it up to her and she agreed that it'll be a date. The sickly man told Naruto to meet him and Yugao at Training Ground 12. The boy nodded and headed home to prepare his supplies as well as leaving the scroll from Mikoto in a safe place.

After gearing up Naruto strapped his wakizashi to his waist and headed to Training Ground 12. It was easy to find due to the fact that it was next to Training Ground 11. Unlike Training Ground 11, however, the landscape for Training Ground 12 was slightly different. The only real difference was that 12, stretched into a forest area full of trees. As he arrived, the blond saw Yugao and Hayate waiting. The ANBU woman had a katana strapped to her back.

"Since this is only a spar, there will be no kill shots so try not to kill each other. The spar ends when I say so or when your opponent gives up." Hayate explained the rules of the spar.

Yugao turned to him with a grin on her face. "You could be a proctor for the exams someday." The purple haired woman commented. Hayate didn't respond as he raised his hand. Yugao and Naruto got into their battle stances. Hayate swung his hand down to start the match.

- **Yugao vs Naruto-**

Naruto quickly fled into the woods as soon as the match started. "Damn it, I was hoping that he wouldn't flee into the woods." As an ANBU, Yugao was often tasked with watching over Naruto. After the incident where the blond pranked the ANBU HQ, she was also tasked on capturing him. Like everyone else, she was unable to find Naruto anywhere in the village after the prank was committed. She had hoped he would fight her head on. Now she either had to chase after him while running through possible traps or wait until he showed himself.

She decided on option three: make him come out. **"** **Katon: Housenka no Jutsu (Mythical Fire Phoenix Technique)."** Yugao shot small fireballs from her mouth and aimed them at the trees. Some trees were alight from the technique but Naruto still didn't appear. A kunai was thrown from the trees and Yugao easily sidestepped away from it. This time, two shurikens came whirling from her left, making Yugao run forward. Despite this action, the shurikens followed her movements.

' _What, how is it following me?'_ The woman mused when she saw an odd glimmer from the sun. _'He's using ninja wire to control the shurikens' path.'_ Yugao grabbed her katana and severed the connection. From his hiding spot, Naruto waited for the right opportunity to strike. When Yugao turned her back on Naruto, he pounced. The ANBU woman felt a presence behind her so she drove her left foot into the ground and spun with her right foot in the air. Her foot met a burned piece of wood and the wood shattered under the pressure.

' _He was able to_ _ **Kawarimi**_ _just in time but how did he get behind me?'_ Her thoughts were interrupted when two shuriken attached with ninja wire came from her right and left. She ran forward only for a kunai to come straight at her face. She tilted her body to the side to avoid the flying projectile. Only her instincts saved her from the next attack. Naruto side swiped with his blade, forcing Yugao to drop to the ground.

The blond swung his blade down but was blocked by Yugao's katana. Yugao, using her superior strength, pushed Naruto's wakizashi back. She pressed her hands on the ground and swung her feet up to her chest. As soon as her knees were over her head, her hands pushed her off the ground allowing her body to sail towards Naruto. The boy crossed his arms across his chest before Yugao's kick hit him, the attack now landing on his arms.

Naruto skidded back from the force of the kicks. He had no time to think as Yugao was already up and pressing him. The purple haired woman swung her katana in a downward arc and Naruto blocked by raising his wakizashi with his right hand. He instantly grabbed the handle with his left hand and pulled out the small kunai. He flicked the kunai at Yugao's chest, forcing her to dodge by bending backwards. He used **Kawarimi** to switch places with the kunai and swung his blade upwards towards Yugao's back.

With cat-like reflexes, Yugao used her blade to deflect the tip of Naruto's sword. She flipped her body upright instantly and swung her sword's pommel at Naruto's right hand. The moved caused Naruto's hand to tense up and he dropped his blade. The next thing he felt was Yugao's katana pressed against his neck. "I give up." Naruto said while raising his hands up.

Clapping could be heard from Hayate. "I must say, you're better than I thought." The Kenjutsu user praised.

Yugao put her katana back into his sheath and Naruto did the same whit his wakizashi. "You almost got me Naruto. That's something even if I'm only going at you with 25% of my full strength."

Naruto jaw dropped at the reveal. "Oh man, I thought you were going full strength the whole time." The boy commented, sad that she wasn't going all out.

Hayate and Yugao laughed at his disappointment. "Naruto if I was going full strength, you wouldn't have made it to the woods. I'm not an ANBU for nothing." The purple haired woman explained, trying to bring up his spirits.

"Naruto I must say that performance was *cough* impressive. *cough* I would gladly train you in Kenjutsu but I'll admit that you have some weaknesses. Although Yugao is older than you, she was able to out-muscle and outrun you when she wasn't going full speed. I know that it sounds harsh since she's an ANBU but I think we should work on allowing you to go faster in bursts of speed and add strength training. Your stamina is good as you don't *cough* seemed fatigued. You're able to make some good plans but it seemed like you were swinging your sword wildly at times. I figured that you don't have a style so I'll *cough* help you find one. Now I want you to explain the battle to me and why you did such things so I can help choose a Kenjutsu style that fits you." Hayate said while assessing Naruto's performance.

"I usually train at the training grounds next to this one so I'm used to the terrain around here. As you said, I don't have a Kenjutsu style so I planned to attack with long distance attacks. I ran into the woods, hoping Yugao-san would follow me. She didn't and tried to flush me out. I threw a kunai to get her to dodge. I then threw two shurikens that I attached with ninja wire and used them to direct her back to her original position. As soon as she saw the wire, I tied the wire to a tree branch. I then used **Kawarimi** with the kunai I threw earlier and used **Henge** to change into a kunai as fast as possible. When she cut the wire, I waited until her back was turned to attack her but she spun around and kicked me. Luckily I was able to use **Kawarimi** with a burnt log. I once again pulled out my ninja wire and shurikens except this time I attached the wire to a tree trunk. I let them loose and they traveled in a circular fashion towards Yugao-san. I threw a kunai, forcing her to dodge. Once again I used **Kawarimi** on the kunai to get behind her but she dropped to the ground. I resumed my attack but she did this awesome maneuver where she flipped her body up and drop kicked me. She pressed her attack, which I blocked before pulling out my secret kunai. I threw it at her and she did the crazy matrix thing and dodged. I used **Kawarimi** once more and aimed for her unprotected back but she used her cat reflexes to parry. Which I can totally see why you're called Cat now. Yugao-san hit my hand and made me drop my wakizashi. That ended the spar." Naruto finished speaking as he ran out of breath.

Hayate and Yugao stood there assessing what they just heard. No Academy student should be able to remember every part of the battle and analyze it, well except for maybe a Nara. They were very impressed with Naruto's intellect both inside and outside of battle. Yugao can see that all those pranks he pulled were essentially traps that were harmless. The way he hid and executed his traps were similar to how an ANBU was taught.

Hayate then spoke to Naruto. "I might have a style for you but I'll have to look it up to be sure. Let's say we meet here once a week for training on Mondays." The male Kenjutsu user proposed. Naruto nodded and went to retrieve his supplies that he used during the spar.

Yugao then spoke out loud. "You've really found a diamond in the rough. He's quite impressive for one so young but he seems over reliant on the **Kawarimi no Jutsu**."

Hayate shook his head. "There's a reason why Yugao-chan. After all he was trained by *cough* **Kawarimi no Megami**." He told her. Yugao was shocked at what Hayate had revealed. The last person Mikoto helped train was the prodigy Shisui. She now knew why Naruto used that technique so much. He was probably honoring her in his own way.

 ***Later that Afternoon***

After freshening up, Naruto headed to the Aburame Compound. He arrived at Shino's place and asked for the Aburame heir. Once Shino arrived, the blond boy told Shino that he needed to tell him and Shikamaru something important. Shino's eyebrow quirked up but he agreed to come with him. The duo walked to the Nara Compound in silence. They arrived to see Shikamaru and Shikaku playing shogi. They all exchanged greetings with one another. "Shikamaru I need to talk with you about something important and preferably in private." Naruto said while rubbing the back of his head.

Both Shikaku's and Shikamaru's eyebrows rose just like Shino's did earlier. ' _Does he know about his tenant? Maybe the Hokage told him. Anyway it's too troublesome to get involved.'_ Shikaku thought, missing that Shikamaru said they were going to borrow the privacy room.

When the boys were all in the room, Shikamaru activated the privacy seals. "So what do you want to talk about?" The Nara asked his blond friend.

"Well you know how in the books, it says that the Kyuubi was killed by the Yondaime. The truth is that the Kyuubi can't be killed since it's made purely out of chakra. The only way to stop the Kyuubi is by sealing it in a newborn baby. The baby will then become a jinchuriki, a human container of the beast. The Yondaime was able to seal the Kyuubi into a baby at the expense of his own life." Naruto finished as he gulped down his nervousness. He needed to tell them the next part.

"So that baby was you, right?" The lazy Nara guessed. Naruto spun toward Shikamaru and stared wide-eyed. "Judging from your reaction, how the villagers look at you, the graffiti on the walls at your apartment, and how all the adults seem to know something we don't means I'm right. I didn't know the exact reason why but I would've guessed eventually." Shikamaru shared his logic with the group. Naruto chuckled nervously.

"As expected of you Shika, you really are too smart for your own good sometimes." The jinchuriki commented.

"I, as well, suspected something was going on." Naruto looked to the source of the voice, Shino. "My kikaichu told me that you seemed to have two different chakras. I now know the reason why." The Aburame clarified. Naruto sat there in disbelief, his own friends already sort of knew something about him was different.

"If what you said is true, then you're just the prison keeping the prisoner within you. Is the seal secured?" Shikamaru asked although he inwardly knew the answer.

"Yeah it's the most secure seal out of all of them. The Hokage and Jiraiya of the Sannin told me so." Naruto answered.

"Well if they say so, then we don't have anything to worry about." Shikamaru said while Shino nodded.

"You guys aren't scared of me? You don't believe that I'm the Kyuubi in disguise?" The blonde inquired. Naruto trusted his friends but he needed reassurance.

"Look Naruto you're a very good friend of ours. You're one of the kindest people I know because you always give people a second chance even when they don't deserve it. If you're actually the Kyuubi in disguise, then you're one friendly demon." Shikamaru smirked.

"As I said once before, you don't discriminate against my clan. You openly listen to us talk about insects while also engaging in the conversation as well. You're an ally to us and will always be until you say so." Shino chimed in. Naruto grabbed both of them and gave them a big hug.

"I knew I could trust you guys, thank you so much for accepting me. Oh and you can't tell anyone about this because it's an S-Class secret." Naruto added with a huge smile. Shikamaru just muttered a 'troublesome' while Shino answered with silence.

"Naruto, Shino wait here for a second. I also got something I want to show you." Shikamaru said after he pried himself from Naruto. He then left the room, only to come back with a book and handed it to the blond. Shikamaru then motioned Shino to sit next to Naruto while he sat on the other side.

"When I said I didn't have a present for you, I was only telling you a half-truth. I didn't have your present because it wasn't ready yet." Shikamaru explained. Naruto then opened the book Shikamaru gave him. Inside was a picture of Shikaku, Yoshino, the Yondaime, and a red haired woman. Shikaku was standing next to Yoshino while the Yondaime stood next to the red haired woman. The picture had writing that said 'From: The Red Hot Habanero'.

"I accidentally saw this picture in one of my family's old photo albums when I was forced against my will to help clean the basement a few weeks ago. It was tucked in the back so you wouldn't see it if you didn't look carefully. I was curious so I asked my parents about it. They simply took the picture from me and told me not to worry about. That only further intrigue me so I went to the library and I found out her name. Her name was Uzumaki Kushina and I believe that she's your mother." Before Naruto can comment, Shikamaru continued.

"That wasn't even the most surprising thing. It's said that her son was presumed dead along with her. If you look at the picture, your mom and the Yondaime seem close. That's because they actually are close. Uzumaki Kushina's husband was Namikaze Minato, in other words, the Yondaime was your father."

[1] We never find out what Ino's and Chouji's mothers' names were. So I used the name of their voice actors.

[2] Apparently Mikoto means 'words of a ruler' so I thought it was appropriate to name Naruto's wakizashi that.

 **Reviews:**

 **NinjaFang1331** – Congratulations sir/madam because you're the sole holder of the first two reviews of this story!

 **sparrowhawk13** – Thank you for the support!

 **Kairan1979** – Danzo will get what's coming to him soon…

 **zeldawolffang** – Thanks, I hope you continue to enjoy it!

 **OSR fanatic –** Your wish is my command. Just kidding, I was almost finished when you reviewed this story. So you got really lucky and thanks for the support. :]


	4. Chapter 4

**A.N. 1**

Wow, the last chapter received so many reviews! I'm glad that people are reading this story and it makes me happy when I read the reviews. I'm actually four away from reaching 100 followers! Not bad if I say so myself. Regarding Naruto canon jutsus, I'm open to suggestions for replacements. That doesn't mean I would use them since I have a certain direction I want to go with this story.

Regarding guest reviews, if you vote under a guest account, I won't count them. My reason for this is because you could be the same person and I wouldn't know the difference. If you want to vote, please make an account. It's honestly not that hard to make one and you can talk to me via reviews or PMs. Remember that you're able to vote by the poll that's on my profile and by reviews. The voting will end when I post Chapter 6.

 **A.N. 2**

This chapter has been edited as of 1/1/16. Added several details to the chapter.

Anyways here's Chapter 4 of Master of the Basics!

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.

"Talking"

' _Thoughts_ _'_

 **Jutsu/Biju**

 **'** _ _ **Biju Thoughts**__ **'**

 **Chapter 4: Darkness Be Gone**

Silence engulfed the room as Naruto showed no outward reaction to the shocking revelation. Shikamaru had his head down on the table, waiting for Naruto's words to break the quiet. Shino had initially shown a reaction to the discovery but he schooled his face back to normal. The blond boy stared at the picture so intensely, it was as if he was trying to burn it with his eyes. What was he supposed to say after discovering the fact that his idol was actually his father?

' _This woman is my mother and the Yondaime is my father. Mikoto-san said that my mother had red hair, which this person has. How do I know Shika knows what he's talking about?'_ Naruto shook his head free of those thoughts. _'Of course he knows what he's talking about. Why did my dad seal the Kyuubi within me? Did he hate me for some reason? Jiji told me that he loved me but what am I supposed to believe?'_

"…ruto. Naruto. I said Naruto!" The jinchuriki was broken from his stupor and looked towards Shikamaru, who had been calling his name. "Do you want to talk about it?" The Nara heir asked. Naruto was unsure of what to do. He obviously trusted his friends. The trust had strengthened further when they accepted that he was the Kyuubi's jinchuriki. "I'll go grab some tea, you want some Shino?" Shikamaru got a nod from the kikaichu user and left the room.

Naruto collapsed back onto the tatami floor. Many things had occurred in such a short span. The Uchiha Massacre, the revelation of the Kyuubi secret and now the discovery of his parents' identities. Shikamaru came back a few minutes later, carrying a tray with three tea cups on it. Each boy took a sip from their cups and quickly relaxed. "Thank you for finding out for me Shikamaru. Hokage-Jiji told me that he would tell me their identities when I became a Chunin. I understand why now since they probably made tons of enemies that would do anything to kill me but I'm honestly glad that I was able to find out sooner." Naruto's words came out smoothly as a small smile spread across his face.

"What do you plan to do with this information Naruto? Will you ask for your inheritance or choose to remain silent?" Shino asked his friend.

"I honestly didn't even think about my inheritance until you mentioned it. I think I'll keep silent because I know I'm not strong enough to handle most of my parents' enemies. To get to me, they would target my closest people. There's no way they're going to attack the Hokage so that means you two." Naruto explained, pointing to his friends.

"Troublesome." The Nara voiced his displeasure. Naruto and Shino laughed at Shikamaru. Instantly the pineapple-headed boy and the whiskered boy stared at the third boy in the room.

' _Oh Kami, the world's going to end! Shino openly laughed at something!'_ Naruto thought.

Noticing the stares, Shino instantly returned to stoic face and stood up. He glared at them from behind his sunglasses. "That doesn't leave this room…ever. Do you two understand?"

Shikamaru and Naruto caught the subtle threat that hung in the air. "Well you're right about one thing. No information is going to leave this room." Shikamaru said to ease the tension. They all nodded and left the room as if sensitive information wasn't discussed. Shino returned home for dinner while Naruto was forced to stay for dinner by Yoshino.

 ***Two months later***

Naruto ducked and weaved through buildings while trying to escape his pursuer. The blonde hid in the shadows and pressed his body up against a wall. Quickly catching his breath, he tried to think of an escape plan but his thought process was interrupted. A kunai grazed his cheek and his assailant was situated directly above him. The boy fled the scene without looking back. He needed to get to the Hokage Tower as that was one of his safe havens. He ran into the crowd and quickly used **Henge** to change into a civilian.

He casually walked, blending in with the villagers. Naruto headed straight towards Training Ground 7, hoping to shake off his enemy by going by an alternative route. As he passed the grounds, ninja wire surrounded him and the disguised Naruto was tied up. "Got you gaki!" The assailant declared. A devilish smile was on his captor's face as she walked towards him. Her outfit did little to hide her modesty from the world. She wore a revealing attire that consisted of a mesh body suit and an orange skirt. A tan overcoat was worn loosely over her mesh suit. Her purple hair was styled similar to Shikamaru's. "You almost had me, too bad I'm too awesome to fall for your tricks. Your posture was more of a shinobi's than a civilian's."

Naruto cursed his fate as the captor put him over her shoulder and used **Shunshin** **no Jutsu (Body Flicker Technique)** to appear in the T&I building. He was dragged into a dimly lit room that was commonly used for torture. The blonde was placed on a chair across from two pissed off men. "Good job on catching Naruto, he's known to be able to escape from even ANBU." Inoichi congratulated the snake mistress on a job well done. Unlike what he wore to the birthday party, Inoichi wore his Jonin attire.

"Like he can escape from me after what he did." Mitarashi Anko smirked.

"Uzumaki." A deep voice that belonged to Morino Ibiki, got the blonde's attention. The chief of the T&I division's black jacket came into view. His blue bandana covered his scarred head from the world. "What were you thinking when you decided to replace our tools with non-harmful versions?" Ibiki glared at the boy. Naruto had decided to prank the place where criminals were regularly interrogated. It took him an entire week to prepare the tools necessary to accomplish the prank.

"Am I going to be punished?" Naruto asked innocently.

It had been quite some time since he was last punished for his pranks. "As long as you tell me what I want to know, there won't be any punishments." Ibiki said before leaning forward. "If you refuse to answer my questions, I'll make sure I'm the one in charge of your punishment." The scarred man threatened. Naruto immediately nodded, clearly getting the message.

"How were you able to get into this building and replace our tools undetected?" Inoichi asked the question.

"I used **Henge** to change into you Inoichi-san. I then went around talking about Ino with all of your coworkers. Ino told me that's what you usually do at work besides interrogating." The blonde boy replied. Inoichi looked away in shame, avoiding Ibiki's and Anko's gazes. Naruto continued his explanation.

"I left the building after memorizing the layout and where the tools were kept. I bought lots of clay and molded the clay to have the exact same shape and weight as your tools. I painted the fakes with a silver color and glazed it over to give it a metallic shine. I snuck back in **Henged** as one of your coworkers who had 'conveniently' gotten sick with a stomach ache that day. I stole your tools and replaced them with my clay ones before leaving. I got caught by this lady a couple of hours later." The jinchuriki explained. "Also, I should remind you that you weren't allowed to take me in since you have no evidence to use against me. If I didn't confess to my prank, then you guys would be explaining to the Hokage why you unlawfully captured and interrogated a civilian." The boy boldly told them.

"Why do you believe we didn't find evidence?" Inoichi asked since it was it true that they didn't find any evidence.

"Easy, you didn't call ANBU to bring me in." Naruto replied with a smirk. The three interrogators had a huge headache thanks to the little blond. No wonder no one attempted to capture him if they were even able to find him.

"Anko untie him so we can get our tools back." Ibiki ordered as he rubbed his temples to soothe the pain of being outsmarted by a 10-year-old.

"No need for that, **Nawanuke no Jutsu (Rope Escape Technique)**." Naruto escaped from his bindings and pulled out a scroll. From the scroll, several instruments commonly used by interrogators came out.

"Gaki, you were able to escape this whole time!?" Anko asked, bewildered by the kid in front of her.

"Of course. You aren't the first person who had managed to tie me up. I just wanted to see what it would be like to get interrogated by professionals." Naruto answered while explaining his reason. Inoichi could clearly see that Naruto's thought process was completely different from a normal 10 year old. "Hey, you never did tell me what happened when you used the clay to injure your so-called victims."

Anko decided to answer this question. "I was scaring the wits out of this guy and he was just about to spill. I grabbed a senbon, intending to stab him in the knee. Instead of drawing blood, the senbon bent from contact. Both the guy and I stared at each other before we started laughing. He laughed. I laughed. I then knocked him out with a punch to the gut and began hearing that everyone else was having the exact same problem." She recapped what happened earlier today. Naruto busted out laughing at their predicament.

"If there's one thing that we can get out of this, is that we can now psychologically scare our prisoners since they won't be able to tell the difference between the real and fake tools." Ibiki grinned manically for seeing the silver lining in this event. Inoichi and Naruto sweat dropped at Ibiki's happiness.

"Man you guys really know how to scare people." Naruto commented as an idea popped into his head. "Do you think I can help interrogate someone?"

Inoichi was flabbergasted at Naruto's question. "Why do you want to interrogate someone, if I may ask?" The blonde man inquired, not liking the fact that his daughter's friend wanted to interrogate a person.

Naruto smirked before pulling out a scroll that contained the book, 'Shinobi Basics 101'. "This book says that a shinobi must always control their emotions out in the field. If you let your emotions get to you, you're more likely to make mistakes. I figured that if I was able to manipulate my opponent's emotions then I'll have a better chance of winning."

Anko and Ibiki smiled at his logic. The ability to get under someone's skin was quite useful. An enemy could get distracted by your words, actions, or even clothing. That was why Anko dressed so scandalously and teased people. Ibiki had a hardened gaze along with an imposing build that deterred enemies. "Sorry gaki but you have to be a part of the division to actually interrogate someone." Anko replied as she killed Naruto's chances with that.

"Do you happen to have any books or scrolls regarding the subject?" Naruto asked since he wasn't going to interrogate anyone anytime soon.

"I actually think you have the right mindset regarding controlling your emotions but I don't think you should try to manipulate your opponent's emotions. If you accidently misjudge how a person is going to react, then that can mean your death. I have seen people taunt their opponent, only to be dead when their opponent went off in a rage." Inoichi reasoned with the fellow blonde.

"What Inoichi says is right. You should spend your time observing your opponent instead. Information is very vital to a shinobi due to the fact that any piece of information can save you from death. Of course, not all information is correct so you'll have to determine which one's real or fake. For example, when you look at me, what kind of fighter do you see?" Ibiki asked Naruto.

"To me, you're mainly a Ninjutsu expert that also excels in Taijutsu." Naruto answered after looking at Ibiki.

Ibiki smirked at the answer. "I'm actually a Genjutsu expert that excels in Ninjutsu." The imposing man replied. Naruto was perplexed because Ibiki didn't seem the type to use Genjutsu. Ibiki saw that Naruto was slightly confused. "That information is false. I simply wanted to see your reaction. I'm really a shinobi that excels in Shurikenjutsu, Genjutsu, and Ninjutsu but I'm not an expert in any field." Naruto was dumbfounded that he was tricked so easily. This time, Anko decided to chime into the conversation.

"As Ibiki said, to a shinobi information is very vital. The only way to counter that information is deception. Deception is the key to luring your opponent into a trap and tends to be more effective than taunting. As a prankster, you know about deception since you used a **Henge** to blend into the crowd. You took another route, knowing that I can't stop you if you're at the Hokage Tower." She informed. Naruto realized he was using deception without realizing it and how effective it was.

"So you're saying that if I look weaker, my opponents are bound to underestimate me. Since they underestimate me, it gives me more chances to deal a fatal strike." The boy summarized.

"Since you're a gaki, people are bound to underestimate you. Not to mention the fact that you look so freaking innocent." Anko commented as she pulled on Naruto's cheeks. The blonde boy pouted, which made Anko comment on cute he looked.

"Thank you for the lesson Ibiki-san, Inoichi-san, and crazy lady. You helped me learn an important lesson today. Since you helped me, I promise that I won't prank T&I Headquarters again, dattebayo!"

Inoichi and Ibiki sighed in relief while Anko was saddened. "Aw, that means I can't chase you around town anymore." The purple haired woman frowned. "Oh well, I can always go 'play' with the prisoners and my name is Anko, not crazy lady."

Naruto snorted at her. "Fine crazy lady, I'll 'try' not to call you crazy lady." He sarcastically replied. Anko pulled out a kunai, which prompted Naruto to bolt the hell out of there.

"Wait gaki, who told you that you can leave? Come back here!" Anko shouted as she gave chase, leaving the two male interrogators by themselves.

"I feel sorry for Naruto, Anko finally found someone to play with." Inoichi said while Ibiki agreed on the sentiment.

 ***Three weeks later***

Yugao was heading to Dangoya to meet up with her friends. The ANBU kunoichi was enjoying a rare day off from duty. Usually she would spend it with her boyfriend, Hayate, but he was away on a mission. This lead to her having a rare girls' day with her friends. As she entered the dango shop, her eyes spotted a patch of yellow hair. "Naruto-kun what are you doing here?" She asked the boy that had become like a little brother to her.

It had been almost three months since Naruto came under the tutelage of Hayate. Hayate taught the blonde a version of the ****Konoha Ryu** (Leaf Style)** that relied on Naruto's stealth ability and mastery of the **Kawarimi no Jutsu** , ****Henge no Jutsu**** , and ****Kakuremino no Jutsu** **(Cloak of Invisibility Technique)**. ** The original ****Konoha Ryu** ** used distractions and illusions to overwhelm the opponent. Naruto's version attacked the opponent's blind spots from various directions before hiding again. The boy had promptly called his sword style, ****Kage Iai Ryu (Shadow Quick Draw Style)**. ** Yugao thought the name was fitting, considering that most of the attacks were those of the quick draw variety.

While Naruto was learning the style rapidly, the sword style had a major flaw. As the objective was to hit and run before the opponent could counterattack, fighting in an open area with no places to hide proved to be a weakness. A straight up fight wasn't ideal for someone of Naruto's skill set. Luckily Hayate had devised a way to avoid such a situation. Her boyfriend worked on his pupil's speed, acceleration, and ability to quickly draw out the wakizashi.

Speed was primarily used to catch up to or flee from the opponent. Acceleration was for when Naruto was ready to attack and needed to close the distance. Drawing out the wakizashi was used when an enemy was able to catch him off guard or to attack swiftly. If he was able to draw his blade fast enough, the blonde would be able to defend or attack.

Yugao would sometimes come by and help with the blonde's training. The ANBU woman told him about her and Hayate's past. She had gotten together with the sickly man due to the fact that she needed to know how to use a sword in order to enlist in ANBU. The Sandaime had recommended Hayate as her instructor. Over time, they got closer and started dating each other.

Since she saw Naruto almost weekly, they developed a sibling relationship. For Yugao, it was easy to see the young jinchuriki as a younger brother since she was tasked to watch over him when he was little. The same was true for Naruto as he also treated her like a big sister. It had gotten to the point where the purple haired woman would scold Hayate for overworking her little brother. Of course Naruto came to his sensei's defense every time since he wanted Hayate to push him harder.

"Hey Yugao-nee." Naruto greeted her. "I'm taking a break from my studies. What are you doing here? Is it another date with Hayate-sensei?" Naruto asked the ANBU woman.

"Yugao, I'm over here." A feminine voice called out to the purple haired woman. The Cat ANBU grabbed her little brother and dragged him to the booth where the voice originated.

"Kurenai, meet my little brother Uzumaki Naruto." Yugao introduced the Chunin to Naruto. The boy tried to escape from his sister's hold as he left his dango behind where he sat. Unfortunately she was stronger than him so he relented. The blonde turned to meet the red eyes of the raven haired woman sitting across from them.

"Hello Uzumaki-san, I'm Yuuhi Kurenai. I'm a friend of Yugao's." Kurenai introduced herself. She wore a unique outfit that seemed to be bandages that had a pattern of thorns on them. Underneath she wore a red mesh blouse with the right sleeve visible. The Genjutsu user wondered why the name Naruto sounded familiar. She also recalled that Yugao didn't have any siblings.

"Nice to meet you, Kurenai-san. You can call me Naruto, if you wish. I don't particularly care about honorifics." The jinchuriki replied. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'll like to go back to eating my food. Which I was doing before someone dragged me away." He looked at Yugao, who seemed amused at his words. As he was about to get up, a certain someone walked into the establishment.

"Hey Kure-chan!" Anko shouted as she spotted Kurenai.

' _Shit, why in the heck is she here?'_ Naruto cursed as he began panicking. The snake user walked over to the table.

"Who are you talk–" Anko stopped in the middle of her sentence as soon as she saw her favorite gaki. "I've found you, gaki!" The interrogator woman loudly announced, disturbing the patrons. "You can never escape from the great Anko-sama!"

As Anko was prepared to leap at him, Naruto knew he had to resort to his newest jutsu. "Yugao-nee, this crazy snake lady has been stalking me all over town. Every time I run away, she would throw kunais at me. If one of them managed to nick me, she'll appear behind me and lick my blood." Naruto whimpered out the words as he hugged Yugao. In addition to the kunais, Anko would chase him with snakes as well. This promoted her nickname to change from crazy lady to crazy snake lady.

"I didn't –" The Tokubetsu Jonin was about to deny the claims when Naruto cut in. The boy activated his newest jutsu, ****Koinu no Me no Jutsu (Puppy Dog Eyes Technique)**. ** Turning his gaze up to meet the ANBU woman's eyes, he spoke in a scared voice.

"I'm scared Yugao-nee, can you protect me?" Naruto sniveled, tugging at the woman's heart strings. Yugao melted instantly from her little brother's actions. She placed him behind her and patted his blonde hair as reassurance. An instant later, Yugao's katana was firmly pressed against Anko's neck.

"Anko you have until the count of five to explain why you sexually assaulted my cute little brother." The ANBU woman said as she leaked a small killing intent. Everyone gawked at the Kenjutsu user's words. Even Naruto couldn't believe that Yugao thought he was sexually assaulted by Anko. Somehow in his protective older sister's mind, she had twisted his words. "One." Yugao started the countdown.

"Listen Yugao. First off, I didn't sexually assault gaki here. Second, the reason I was chasing him was because he pranked our department. I was the one tasked to bring him in." Anko explained rapidly. Yugao's blade slackened at her words, much to the relief of the snake user. The blond boy wasn't going to have that so he pressed his advantage once more.

"But Yugao-nee, I already went and apologized for the prank. When I was leaving, she started to chase after me for no reason. Ever since, she's been following me around." Naruto whined to Yugao but he was snickering inwardly.

Anko couldn't believe it. _'The gaki's freaking acting but no one else knows that. You win this round but I'm definitely going to get you back this.'_ The Tokubetsu Jonin thought. Before Yugao can press the fellow purple haired female for answers, the earth underneath them shook furiously. "What in the world was that?" Anko audibly voiced everyone's thoughts. An ANBU came out of nowhere and approached Naruto.

"Uzumaki-san, the Hokage requests your immediate assistance. It's of the upmost importance." The operative told the boy. Worried about his grandfather figure, Naruto dashed out of the restaurant and towards the Hokage Tower.

"So you're on Naruto duty today, Lynx." Yugao spoke to the brown haired ANBU with the lynx mask. "I'm wondering why you're still here when Naruto has already left?" Her eyes narrowed at Lynx, causing him to flinch. The lynx operative used **Shunshin** to flee from her wrath. As the ANBU left, everyone went back to their activities. The purple haired ANBU walked back to the booth where her friends were sitting.

"Why do you have ANBU watching over your little brother?" Kurenai asked as she wondered if Yugao ordered her subordinates to keep watch over Naruto. The Genjutsu mistress wouldn't put it past the ANBU captain considering how protective she was with him in the debacle with Anko earlier.

"It was originally a volunteer duty because of his status." Yugao whispered to the raven haired woman.

Kurenai was confused at Yugao's words when it clicked in her. Naruto was the name of the boy that contained the Kyuubi! "I didn't even recognize him since he wasn't wearing that orange monstrosity." The Chunin confessed. Yugao stuck her tongue out in disgust as she remembered the horrible thing.

"He lost that thing over a year ago. Where have you been?" The ANBU woman inquired. Anko snickered at Yugao's disbelief. The snake lady had just returned after retrieving a plate of dango.

"Don't blame Kure-chan. She has to keep up her persona of the 'Ice Queen of Konoha' so she typically ignores everything." Anko explained, her snickering turned into laughter.

Kurenai groaned at the title. "I hate that name. I don't understand why people call me that. I'm a nice person and I don't ignore everything." The Ice Queen denied.

Anko held up three fingers at Kurenai. "One, you've rejected every guy that has asked for a date. Two, you glare at anyone who does anything remotely perverted. Three, you never smile when you're out in the town." The Tokubetsu Jonin put down a finger with every reason.

Kurenai fumed at her reasoning. "It's not my fault that all men are perverts that just want to into my pants. I hate perverts." She retorted. Many men around the elemental nations sneezed at the comment. "Anyway we're getting off track." The Chunin turned to Yugao. "You said that it was a volunteer duty. Does that mean it isn't anymore?" Kurenai wanted to know why a kid had someone watching his every move even if he was 'special'.

Yugao let out a sigh as she explained. "When he was younger, he was constantly pranking people around the village but someone was always able to catch him. That all changed when he threw away his orange jumpsuit and started wearing shinobi clothing. Ever since then, he has been virtually undetectable and began pulling pranks without ever getting caught. To make matters worse, whenever he pulled a prank, there wouldn't be any evidence left behind. Without evidence, he couldn't be accused of any wrong-doing. The people in ANBU, me included, didn't believe that he was untraceable. We believed that the Chunin and Jonin were getting lax or that everything was just a baseless rumor. That was until he pranked the ANBU Headquarters." She said as the other two women gasped. Kurenai couldn't believe Yugao's story.

"The ANBU Headquarters is supposed to have the tightest defense in all of Konoha. It's impossible to get in and out without someone knowing. Not to mention the fact that other than ANBU, no one knows where it's located." Kurenai stated. Despite several years of service as a Konoha kunoichi, she hadn't the slightest of an idea where ANBU HQ was located.

"It 'was' impossible but Naruto managed to find it. For his prank, he poured itch powder in our ANBU and training clothes. For good measure, he added itch powder to the detergent in case we tried to wash the itch powder out. Our masks were hidden in various different areas and when we found a mask, it was usually booby trapped. Some ANBU had bright colored paint sprayed all over them with glitter sprinkled in while others had syrup dumped on them and were covered with feathers. When we told Hokage-sama, he simply chuckled at our misfortune. In the end, we were punished for allowing a single civilian to get in and out of headquarters without being detected. Every ANBU was given gate duty for 24 hours without pay. Izumo and Kotetsu were quite happy to be relieved of their duties for a while. After that fiasco, the volunteer duty became a mandatory duty for all members. Despite someone constantly keeping an eye on him, he always seemed to be able to slip away." Yugao finished as she remembered the wretched gate duty.

Kurenai was unsure of what to say. "And this kid, that was able to hide from highly trained ANBU, is somehow still an academy student?" The Genjutsu mistress questioned.

"He's currently in the bottom four of his graduating class." Yugao told them nonchalantly. This shocked Kurenai and Anko, who almost choked on a piece of dango.

"How's that possible!? I expected him to be near the top of the class." Anko commented after drinking some sake to soothe the pain of almost choking to death.

Yugao smirked at the girls' reactions. "He was actually in the middle of his class before he suddenly plummeted. When I asked him the reason, he told me, 'before you can fool your enemies, you must be able to fool your allies'."

Anko grinned brightly. "I, the great Mitarashi Anko, taught him that deception was vital to a ninja and he obviously took it to heart." She boasted while puffing out her chest proudly, ignoring the fact both Ibiki and Inoichi also advised the boy. Disregarding Anko, Yugao continued to explain why Naruto hadn't graduated yet to Kurenai.

"Naruto has ANBU level stealth, trapping, and possibly espionage skills. His high level of intelligence and creativity makes him a tricky opponent. His stamina and chakra levels are that of a mid-Chunin but I expect him to have Jonin levels when he graduates. Naruto has a great mastery over the ****Kawarimi no Jutsu** , **Henge no Jutsu** , **Kakuremino no Jutsu** , **and ****Nawanuke no Jutsu**. ** He's able to use the last three without hand seals. Additionally, he's a level two Fuinjutsu user and will most likely be level three in a few months." Yugao informed.

"Those skills alone makes him worthy enough to be a Genin. I still don't see why he hasn't graduated early." Kurenai commented but the purple haired ANBU shook her head.

"That's where the praise ends as his other physical abilities, besides stamina, are still that of an academy student. Years of nutrition deficiency doesn't correct itself that quickly, even with his 'condition'. His Genjutsu and Taijutsu are non-existent at the moment. Naruto has only recently started Kenjutsu training with Hayate and sometimes me. He also isn't able to perform the **Bunshin no Jutsu** , which is one of the requirements needed to pass the Genin exams." Yugao wrapped up her in-depth analysis of her little brother.

"I felt like I was the Hokage for a moment, with the way you reported Naruto's abilities." Kurenai laughed softly before pondered on something Yugao had said. "Do you think the reason he can't do the ****Bunshin no Jutsu** ** is because of his 'condition'? It only requires a small amount of chakra after all." The Genjutsu mistress wondered.

Yugao sighed in her seat. "Hayate and I deduced that as well when we started training him. We told him there were elemental **Bunshin** that he can learn but he refused." The Kenjutsu user informed.

This time Anko spoke up, choosing to enjoy her dango rather than converse. "Why did the gaki refuse? If I was him, I would've pounced on the idea of learning elemental **Bunshins**. Especially if it allows me to avoid failing." The snake user reasoned.

Yugao's expression turned solemn. "The reason is because of a promise with his former teacher. He promised her that he would master lower ranked jutsus before going for higher ranked jutsus. Naruto told me that he would rather use a low ranked jutsu at full power than a high ranked jutsu at half the power." Yugao said, recalling the conversation that she had with Naruto.

Kurenai could see the reasoning behind it but he was doing more harm than good. Anko frowned at the former teacher part since it reminded her of a certain snake. "Who was his former teacher? She must've been someone incredible for him to respect her so much." The Genjutsu mistress inquired.

"It was the late Mikoto-sama." Yugao replied as she began wondering if she had the right to talk about Naruto's past with her friends. Sure they had gotten close in the past few weeks but he told her his past in confidence. Kurenai was shocked and easily saw why the blond persisted with the **Bunshin no Jutsu**. If Naruto gave up, it would be like breaking one of the few bonds he had left of her. The booth was silent even though the rest of the store was loud and rowdy. "Please don't tell this to anyone. I shouldn't have told you without asking Naruto for permission." Yugao pleaded to her friends.

They nodded at the request. "If it helps, why not tell him to make as many **Bunshin** as possible instead of the required three? It should be easier since he won't be limiting the amount of chakra he uses." Kurenai suggested. Yugao nodded and said that she'll tell Naruto the next time she saw him. The three ladies continued to talk about different topics well into the night.

 ***With Naruto after he left Dangoya***

As Naruto arrived at the Hokage Tower, he was greeted with craters on the floors and walls. The ANBU were on the floor knocked out while the secretary was shivering behind her chair. He raced past her, hoping his grandfather was safe from whomever that attacked. The boy busted the door open to see Jiraiya and Hiruzen, holding down a blond lady. A black-haired lady holding a pig was off to the side, away from the men. "Hokage-sama, are you alright?" Naruto asked even though he could see the situation was under control.

"Oh yes, I'm fine Naruto-kun. Please come in and close the door." The Hokage smiled at Naruto's formal way of addressing him. The blonde boy did as told and watched as the two men slowly got off the blonde woman. Upon release, she gingerly stood up and looked into the direction of Naruto. Her blonde haired was tied loosely into two ponytails while her forehead had a unique diamond-shaped mark. Both her gray kimono and the green haori, which she wore over the kimono, were in a disheveled state as she walked towards her fellow blond. Naruto's eyes were drawn to the green gem necklace around the woman's neck. Looking up at her eyes, he saw a mixture of emotions swirling in them. But the most prominent was that of remembrance.

 _'Have I seen this woman before? Only Jiji gives me that look when I visit, like he's seeing someone else in me.'_ Naruto mused before recalling his parents. _'She must've known my parents!'_ He concluded.

"Naruto, I want you to listen to me." Hiruzen spoke, drawing the boy's attention away from the woman. "The person in front of you is Tsunade of the Sannin and also your godmother. Before you get mad at her, she didn't know that you existed until today. Jiraiya and I hid the truth from her because she wasn't in the right mindset to care for you." Hiruzen explained while nursing the bruises he got from his female student.

"You didn't know I existed?" Naruto asked calmly.

Tsunade shook her head no. "You were presumed dead along with your parents. I figured that you died since my sensei would've told me if you were alive. At least I thought he would've told me." She scoffed out the last sentence. His godmother sat down on the floor in front of him. "Anyways I should introduce myself. My name is Senju Tsunade, one of the three legendary Sannin and the last of the Senju clan. I'm known as the best medic in the world." She said, hoping to give a good impression.

"Hime is also known as 'The Legendary Sucker' as she's the worst gambler in the world." Jiraiya butted in.

"Nobody asked you!" Tsunade rebuked her teammate. Clearing her throat, she turned back to her grandson. "Now tell me a little about yourself."

Naruto sat down on the floor as well. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto, the village pariah and one of the few Uzumaki in the world. My dreams are to one day become Hokage and to keep all of my promises. In my spare time, I like to pull pranks, train, and read books." Naruto started out softly but grew louder as he finished. A second later, the black haired lady sat down next to them.

"Hello Naruto-kun, my name is Shizune and this here is Tonton." Shizune introduced herself. She was wearing a long blueish-black kimono that was held together by a white sash. Tonton had a dark red jacket and a necklace of pearls.

"Buhi!" Tonton called happily as she stepped to Naruto. The blonde boy pet the pink pig, earning another buhi.

"I hope I didn't interrupt. I wanted to introduce myself since I'm Tsunade-sama's apprentice." The black haired medic-nin apologized.

"It's ok Shizune-san. I was wondering who you were." Naruto admitted.

"Please don't call me san, it makes me feel older than I actually am." Shizune sighed as she told the blonde.

"What shall I call you then?" Naruto asked, which made Shizune put a finger to her chin in thought.

"How about Shizune-neechan? I've always wanted a little brother." Shizune remarked.

Naruto's smile increased. "Hai Shizune-neechan, what should I call you godmother?" He said while addressing Tsunade.

"Hmm, how about calling me Tsunade-chan?" She suggested, which made Naruto look at her weird. He remembered reading that she was Jiraiya's teammate.

"Aren't you as old as Jiraiya?" He inquired, adding a tick mark to Tsunade's forehead. "How come you look so pretty?" Naruto asked, unknowingly saving himself from pain.

Tsunade smiled warmly at the younger blonde's question. "What you see is an advance form of **Henge no Jutsu** along with a small Genjutsu." Tsunade explained. Naruto wanted to learn the technique as well but remembered that he had no experience with Genjutsu. Plus he still needed to find a way to perform the **Bunshin no Jutsu**.

"Can't I just call you Tsunade-baachan since it's easier for me?" He questioned. The question earned him a light punch to his head from Tsunade. She nodded, nonetheless, to appease her godson. The three continued to chat, ignoring the two men in the room.

"Looks like we're being ignored sensei." Jiraiya voiced to his sensei.

Hiruzen smiled at the scene in his office. "It's fine, I like seeing them like this." The Sandaime replied. Jiraiya wished that he was a part of the group but he knew that Naruto didn't forgive him yet. "Did you hear his introduction as one of the last Uzumaki?" Hiruzen whispered to his student "Do you think he knows about his heritage?"

"Nah, he probably read about his clan in some history book." Jiraiya presumed, which the Hokage nodded.

"Sorry to interrupt Naruto-kun but can you take Shizune on a tour around the village? It's been quite some time since she's been in the village. I also need to talk to Tsunade about something." Hiruzen asked the young jinchuriki. Naruto noticed that it must've been important so he got up to leave with the black haired medic. He was stopped when Tsunade hugged him.

 _'He looks like a mini-Minato but he seems to have the personalities of both his parents.'_ Tsunade thought as a few tears developed. She quickly wiped them away. He hugged Tsunade back before waving his goodbyes, leaving with Shizune and Tonton. As soon as they left, Hiruzen ordered an ANBU to take his comrades to the hospital. "I really don't want to talk to you right now sensei. I'm tired and need some rest." Tsunade complained to the Sandaime.

"Tsunade I need you to stay because it's of utmost importance. I wouldn't have called you back like this if it wasn't. I also intend to keep my promise regarding the medical program and your debts. However that talk is for another day." Hiruzen replied, summoning another ANBU. "Summon Dog and Lynx to my office immediately and I want the entryway to be cleaned up." He ordered. The ANBU nodded before leaving to perform his duties. A few seconds later, Dog and Lynx appeared in the room.

"You called Hokage-sama?" The ANBU with gravity defying silver hair asked. Hiruzen nodded to Dog and then to Jiraiya. The toad sage surveyed the room before activating his privacy seals.

"The reason I called all of you is because my spies in Root has informed me that Danzo is meeting with Orochimaru early tomorrow in his underground base." The Sandaime informed. Shock could be seen on Jiraiya's and Tsunade's faces. Dog and Lynx were also surprised at the news but their masks covered their expressions.

"Sensei, do you know why they're meeting up?" Jiraiya asked before curiosity getting the better of him. "More importantly, how were you able to get a spy in Root? Danzo has everybody under his control because of the cursed seal on their tongues. If anyone with the seal tried to reveal Root's secrets or Danzo's involvement, they would die." The toad sage inquired. Jiraiya had tried to find a way to negate the seal but the men died before he had the time to study the seal.

Hiruzen chuckled at his student's confusion. "You're correct that a person with the seal cannot say anything but what if someone was capable of transferring his mind into a body without the seal?" The Hokage asked. Sudden realization struck the people in the room.

"Of course! A Yamanaka would be able to divulge the information to you while also being able to spy on Danzo." The seal master said in disbelief. Jiraiya couldn't believe he didn't realize such a simple bypass.

"Regardless, the reason that they're meeting up is unknown at the moment. The reason I called each of you here is because we're going to kill Danzo and Orochimaru for treason. I'll handle Danzo while Jiraiya will take on Orochimaru. Lynx, you will lead us to the base and direct us to Danzo. You'll then pair up with Dog to take down any Root members. I would've liked for you to spare them since they're simply following orders but I know that they would come at you with the intent to kill. Retaliate in kind and make sure to flee if you're being overwhelmed. My spies will help when they see the opportunity. Tsunade, you'll stay here and get the hospital ready for us. During that time, you'll also be serving acting Hokage. Should something happen to me, you'll be my successor." Hiruzen explained his plan to the group.

Tsunade wasn't happy with the plan. "Why am I staying behind while you go off to battle? Sensei I'm not a little girl that needs to be protected, I'm one of the Sannin." She said defiantly. Tsunade didn't like the idea of them going in without a medic.

"Tsunade while you're correct in saying you're a Sannin, how long has it been since you actually fought?" Her sensei questioned. "Forget fighting, how long has it been since you've trained? As a medic, you know that senses dull when not actively used. I've been training rigorously for over three months to get back in fighting shape and I know Danzo has always remained in shape even after the war. Orochimaru and Jiraiya constantly hone their bodies during their travels around the elemental nations. Let us not forget that you've developed a fear of blood since the end of the war." The Sandaime said, watching her winch. "As much of a help you can be, you can quickly become a liability the minute you catch sight of blood. You might think I'm being cruel to you but you must face the facts. I want to correct my mistakes while not making any new ones. I'm not going to my death. I still have to see my grandsons become shinobi before I can happily pass away." Hiruzen smiled kindly, which instantly relaxed the people in the room.

"Alright sensei. I understand your reasoning." Tsunade yielded. While she was unhappy, the blond medic understood that she was a potential liability out in the field. "I want you guys to come back safe. As long as you come back, then I'll do whatever it takes to heal you." The medic assured. The men was grateful that the world's best medic was at their service. "Make sure you come back sensei, I don't want to be stuck as Hokage." Tsunade said bitterly. Hiruzen nodded, knowing that she was still haunted by the demons of her past.

"Get your supplies ready and meet up at my estate in exactly one hour. We'll plan out our attack and rest before heading off to Root headquarters." Hiruzen ordered. The men did exactly as told and quickly left to pack their gear. The fight would be extremely difficult even with the element of surprise. Now Hiruzen simply had to wait for the day to end. When the next day arrived, he would make sure to end his former rival.

 ***Next day, Early Morning Hours***

Four figures made their way towards Training Ground 44 or by its more popular name, the Forest of Death. Everyone was in their typical battle outfits while Hiruzen had on his old Shinobi outfit. Lynx led them to one of the many entrances into Root. Lynx removed the Genjutsu that covered the ground to reveal a metal hatch. Jiraiya checked for any seals while Dog checked for traps. After disabling all they could find, the group made their way into the headquarters and navigated through the tunnels.

They arrived to a clearing where Shimura Danzo stood. "What a surprise to see the Hokage here. How are you on this fair night Hiruzen?" Danzo asked but was frowning that his rival was in his secret base. The Root leader had wrappings covering his right eye and parts of his shaggy black hair. The man had on a white tunic underneath his black robe. _'No wonder the snake left so quickly.'_

"Shimura Danzo, based on reports of child kidnapping and associating with a known traitor, you're hereby sentence to death. This sentence will be effective immediately." The Sandaime cut the chatter as he got into his battle stance.

Suddenly 100 Root ANBU erupted from the shadows and surrounded the intruders. "Deal with the tag-alongs. I'll personally deal with Hiruzen." Danzo ordered.

"Jiraiya go after Orochimaru. The rest of you stick to the plan." Hiruzen ordered his men as well. Dog and Lynx dashed back to the entrance to get to another clearing while Jiraiya pursued after Orochimaru. The toad sage vanished before the Root ANBU were able to intervene. The Root members went after Dog and Lynx, leaving the two war veterans alone.

 **-Dog and Lynx vs 100 Root ANBU-**

Dog and Lynx raced back to the entrance and activated the exploding tags that they placed as they fled. Bombs went off and the tunnel collapsed onto itself. Every Root member survived and quickly surrounded the two intruders. " ** **Mokuton: Ki Eda no Jutsu (Wood Release: Tree Limb Technique)**.** " Lynx sprouted tree limbs, hoping to capture or impale the Root members.

25 members fired off the same fire jutsu. " **Katon: Endan (Fire Release: Fireball)**." They shouted together.

The jutsus merged together, forming one huge fireball. The fireball turned the wood into ash and continued to head towards Lynx. " **Suiton: Suijinheki (Water Release: Water Encampment Wall)**." Dog announced as soon as he was near Lynx. Dog's jutsu surrounded the duo and was barely able to withstand the attack. They heard a roar and turned around to see a ****Doryuudan (Earth Dragon Projectile)** ** coming at them. Dog and Lynx was able to successfully dodge the attacks. They were entirely on the defensive and the enemy wasn't letting up.

" **Raiton: Jibachi** **(Lightning Release: Electromagnetic Murder)** **.** " Several Root ANBU shouted. Bolts of electricity came from every direction and neither Konoha ANBU had enough time to form seals for a jutsu.

" ** **Mushi Kame no Jutsu (Insect Jar Technique)**.** " A stoic voice called out. Insects surrounded the two Konoha ANBU and protected them from harm. After the technique died down, two young Root members stood next to Dog and Lynx.

"It took you two long enough." Dog said rather lazily, even though he was still surrounded.

"It was rather difficult to apply my rinkaichu while everyone was moving around. However, you were able to buy enough time for me to infect everyone." The boy with the stoic voice replied to Dog. As if puppets with their strings cut, the other members of Root fell to the floor in agony. Many bodies twitched before finally succumbing to the microscopic insects.

The young Root members took off their masks to reveal Yamanaka Fu and Aburame Torune. Torune fell down to one knee from chakra exhaustion. "When the Hokage told us about the spies, I never expected you to be so young." Lynx voiced his opinion.

"When we were asked to join Root by Danzo's request, the Hokage gave us an espionage mission to discreetly spy on Danzo. Our abilities made it easy to access Root's secrets." Fu explained.

Torune stood upright and steadied his breathing. "Even the most secure places have insects within them. That includes Root Headquarters as well. I am able to talk to other insects which allowed me to spy on Danzo even though I am not a senior member. Fu would then proceed to enter my mind and memorize what I learned with his clan techniques. When we went on missions, Fu would go into the mind of a random civilian and relay the information to Hokage-sama."

"Good job you two but you have new orders from Hokage-sama. You'll lead me to where the kidnapped kids are located. We'll then flee with them and get them treated at the hospital. This was originally Lynx's orders but that changed when we collapsed the tunnel. Lynx, go assist Hokage-sama immediately." Dog relayed his orders. Lynx merged into the ground and quickly departed from the others.

"Follow me Dog-san." Fu said and the trio left, leaving behind the bodies of 98 dead Root ANBU.

 **-Hiruzen vs Danzo-**

"Hiruzen it seems you've grown a backbone after all these years. I have to ask, what brought about this sudden change?" Danzo spoke calmly.

"I changed when you ordered the Uchiha Massacre despite my wishes. Now enough talk, today I shall bring your life to an end." Hiruzen spat out before throwing five shurikens. " **Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique)**." Instantly the five shurikens multiplied to twenty-five and flew towards Danzo.

" **Fuuton: Daitoppa (Wind Release: Great Breakthrough)**." Danzo released a current of wind that blasted the shurikens aside.

Hiruzen, hoping to capitalize on the wind jutsu, released a fire jutsu. " **Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique)**." The stream of fire grew in size due to the wind jutsu. Danzo was barely able to escape to his left but the jutsu was able to burn the bandages on the right side of his face. There, in Danzo's right eye socket, was a Sharingan.

"Danzo how do you have the Sharingan?" The Sandaime asked before drawing his own conclusions. "Who did you kill to steal that?" Hiruzen was furious at how low his one-time teammate went in order to obtain power.

"I acquired this eye before the Uchiha Massacre. It was from a powerful shinobi, too bad he escaped before I could take his other eye." Danzo informed nonchalantly. Hiruzen's eyes widen in realization. Shisui's body was never found when he had committed suicide.

"Danzo you scum, what made you this power hungry?" The Hokage said in disgust. "I thought you loved the Leaf, yet you took an eye of one of our shinobi." Hiruzen was sicken by the man.

Danzo laughed at Hiruzen. The laughter soon became manically before ceasing. "I love Konohagakure but I believe we belong at the top. Your pacifist ideals make the other hidden villages look at us as if we're weak. That's why I should be Hokage. Under my direction, Konoha would rise over those pathetic weaklings." Danzo replied.

"That doesn't justify your actions. We're Konoha shinobi who bear the Will of Fire. Our job is to mentor the next generation to someday replace ours, not for them to be used as mindless tools." The Hokage refuted. Hiruzen was beyond disgusting by this human, no this demon.

"Shinobis are tools that are meant to be used by their superiors. What's wrong with me using the tools to make me stronger? If I'm stronger then Konoha is stronger, it's as simple as that." Danzo said as if it was the most obvious thing.

The conversation ended with that as both men went through hand seals. Danzo finished first and released his jutsu. " **Fuuton: Shinkuuha (Wind Release: Vacuum Wave)**." Danzo release arcs of cutting wind at Hiruzen's location.

Hiruzen slammed his foot into the ground. " **Doton: Doryuu Heki (Earth Release: Earth Style Wall)**." A slab of rock rose in front of the Sandaime. The rock wall was overwhelmed by the wind attack and was sliced to pieces.

This, however, gave Hiruzen enough time to dodge and slam his palm onto the ground. " **Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique)**." Out of the smoke came Hiruzen's summon, King Enma. Not to be outdone, Danzo summoned his own summoning animal. A giant Baku rose from the smoke. "Let's go Enma, **Henge: Kongōnyoi (Transformation: Adamantine Staff)**." King Enma changed into a black staff and was placed in Hiruzen's hands.

Hiruzen charged and swung his staff at a variety of angles. Danzo was able to dodge due to the Sharingan's abilities. Eventually the Sandaime relentless assault was able to hit Danzo across the neck, making it snap. Danzo turned to smoke and was replaced by a piece of rock from Hiruzen's **Doryuu Heki**. _'He used_ **Kawarimi** _at the last possible second to replace himself with a rock. So that means he's currently behind me.'_ The Hokage quickly thought.

Danzo's summoning animal began sucking in the air. Hiruzen was placed between Danzo and his summon. " **Fuuton: Shinkuu Renpa (Wind Release: Vacuum Successive Waves)**." Blades of wind were aimed at Hiruzen.

"Shit!" The Hokage cursed at his predicament but was able to escape thanks to King Enma's quick thinking. The staff grew arms and threw Hiruzen's body into the air. Hiruzen then initiated his own attack. " **Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**." Two solid clones appeared midair beside the caster. The first clone began his attack and was followed by the second. " **Suiton: Hahonryu (Water Release: Tearing Torrent)**." " **Raiton: Gian (Lightning Release: False Darkness)**." The first clone released a huge torrent of water from his mouth while the second fired a lightning spear from his hand at the torrent.

Danzo stopped his attack and tried to dodge when tree limbs restrained him. " **Mokuton: Mokusatsu Shibari no Jutsu (Wood Release: Smothering Binding Technique)**." A voice came from underneath the ground. Unable to escape, Danzo met the attack head on. The attack tore Danzo's body into shreds. The two **Bunshins** and Danzo's Baku puffed out of existence. Just as Hiruzen landed, a kunai pierced through his heart.

There stood an exhausted Danzo, with his Sharingan eye turned white. Just as Danzo smiled at his victory over his rival, he was struck through the chest. A staff had gone through him and the Hiruzen in front of him turned to wood, revealing a **Moku Bunshin (Wood Clone)**. _'Kinoe!'_ [1] Danzo thought as he remembered the former Root operative. Hiruzen pulled out the staff and Danzo fell to the ground. His life flickered in his eyes as his body was too weak to move.

There was no monologue or rant on being Hokage. His dream on making Konohagakure stand above the other villages was gone. His quest was ultimately ended by the same man who took the Hokage seat from him. His eyes closed and the life of ****Shinobi no Yami** **(The Darkness of the Shinobi)** ** was over.

However unknown to everyone, Danzo gave Orochimaru an order using ****Kotoamatsukami** , **the Uchiha's strongest Genjutsu. The order was to surgically implant Uchihas' eyes along with the Shodai's DNA into Danzo's right arm. But just as the deal was done, Orochimaru fled with the eyes while promising the surgery another time. It was thanks to Hiruzen's intervention that the surgery didn't take place. In the Sandaime Hokage's pursuit to end his rival, he had unknowingly gave his former student more power.

[1] Kinoe was Yamato's name when he was in Root.

 **Reviews:**

 **Santa1 –** Sorry to hear that you don't like harem. I hope you'll still give this story a try though.

 **Dark Neko 4000** – I hope his reaction was to your satisfaction.

 **NinjaFang1331 –** Thank you sir! I hope I was able to portray it as such. After all, Mikoto was a big part in his short life.

 **Tarantul** – Sorry, you can't vote for Karin. She'll play a different role in this story. You can vote for someone else though.

 **emilbootanimefreak –** He won't have the Shadow Clones since it's a B-rank Jutsu. I have an idea how on how to replace it…kind of (elemental clones).

 **Sakusha Saelbu** – Thanks for the review, I hope I kept your interest with this chapter.

 **skg1991 –** Thanks for the help and I just reedited.

 **jhawk046** – Thanks for the review. Glad you think it's that good so far.

 **Ryuujin96 –** WOW! Thanks for the super long review. I plan for him to have more skills in Kenjutsu to compensate for the lack of Ninjutsu. Taijutsu is a blank for me at the moment. I'm definitely open to suggestions regarding replacements for any of his canon jutsus. Yes, I intended for Naruto to use elemental clones now instead of Shadow Clones. Summoning Jutsu will appear more in this story since it can help greatly. I'm not sure about the power levels yet because I'm only on Chapter 4 and Naruto still hasn't graduated yet. That will be for the future. About the higher rank jutsus, I'm still trying to find a way for Naruto not to learn them. He's not getting another wakizashi because of something I'm doing with Haku.

 **Goodfella96 –** No? Yes? Honestly I don't really know but Madara and Kaguya are a long ways from now unless I do a MASSIVE time skip.

 **sparrowhawk13** – Yeah! Shino and Shikamaru are my favorites of the rookie 9 excluding Naruto. I like to read stories with character progression so I want my story to have it too. Thanks for reading!

 **gual1 –** Hope you enjoyed reading his reaction, byes


	5. Chapter 5

**A.N. 1**

I've recently moved to Dallas and it has been a hectic week. Then when I tried to publish this chapter, I couldn't log in to the website. I'll try to release a chapter in 3-5 days but it's not guaranteed a chapter will be released so soon. I changed the rating of this story from a T to M because of language. I'm also taking jutsu suggestions but they can't be overpowered. Just give me a description and I'll see if I can use it. The voting for the harem will be closed in 3 days so vote if you hadn't already. I won't explain how the voting works since I think you should know by now. Here are the results as of this chapter's release:

Tenten Higarashi – 22 votes  
Anko Mitarashi – 13 votes  
Fu – 13 votes  
Kin Tsuchi – 9 votes  
Samui – 9 votes  
Yugito – 9 votes  
Konan – 7 votes  
Hana Inuzuka – 6 votes  
Kurotsuchi – 6 votes  
Mabui – 6 votes  
Mei Terumi – 5 votes  
Karui – 1 vote

As you can see, Tenten is in first place by a wide margin. The only way she's out of the harem is if everyone plots against her. Anko and Fu are tied for second so they're both in if the results stay the same. For the person who voted for Karui, I'm sorry but her chances are pretty much diminished.

I would like to thank everyone because not only did I pass the century mark for follows but also for favorites! This is the longest chapter I've ever written and I hope I was able to keep up the quality. This is my thanks to everyone for reading my story. This chapter also finishes up the introductory before we move on to Konohamaru and Wave. That means Haku would make her long awaited appearance (for me anyway). I hope you enjoy this chapter.

 **A.N. 2**

This chapter has been edited as of 1/4/16. More details were added.

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.

"Talking"

' _Thoughts'_

 **Jutsu/Biju**

 **' _Biju Thoughts_ '**

 **Chapter 5: Reassessment of Fate**

 ***A month later***

Hiruzen sat in his chair and replayed what had happened in the past month. He was hospitalized for one week as a precaution for minor injuries and chakra exhaustion. The defeat of Danzo caused quite a few of events to occur. Danzo's body was burned after it was announced that he was a traitor. Most didn't believe that such an esteemed elder could be a traitor but when evidence of him collaborating with Orochimaru came to light, there was no protest to the burning.

Jiraiya was unable to track Orochimaru's slippery trail which seemed to disappear into thin air. Unable to find him in the darkness, the toad sage went back and reported to Hiruzen. The Hokage ordered a widespread search for possible tunnels or caves that could lead out of the village. The shinobi were able to find several deserted labs but none of them led outside the village. Jiraiya then left the village, hoping that his spy network would aid him in finding where the snake hid.

Danzo's Root was secretly kept in operation but this time under the guidance of Lynx, aka Tenzo, who was named Root Commander. All Root shinobi that were loyal to Danzo were executed for treason. The others surrendered and were admitted into T&I. Documents regarding Root's activities were collected for Hiruzen to review. It was amazing that Danzo had put his plans and dealings on paper. Some of the stuff the man had done was frightening. It clearly showed how much he strayed from the right path.

He was involved with Hanzo the Salamander to quell Amegakure's rebellion, in hopes that Hanzo would help him invade Konohagakure so Danzo could be Hokage. He gathered, against their will, young children to be put in his program. He would even kill the parents if the child had potential to be used as a weapon. Danzo even made children kill each other to get rid of their so called 'useless emotions'. He attempted to kill Shisui to steal his Sharingan but he was only able to steal an eye before Shisui escaped. That explained the real reason why Shisui had committed suicide, to prevent Danzo from acquiring the other eye.

In addition, there was a roster of every Root ANBU. Even the ones that were killed were listed. Hiruzen checked the list and matched it with his own roster of shinobi. The Sandaime wanted to ensure that no Root ANBU loyal to Danzo was alive. He skipped over the ones killed in action as they were dead.

Danzo's papers even revealed how the other elders and some civilian council members were persuaded to join his side. This caused Hiruzen to strip those council members of their seats and send them to T&I for questioning. Koharu and Homura were asked to retire because if the villagers knew that all three elders were involved in traitorous actions, the villagers wouldn't trust the higher ups.

The two ex-elders regretfully retired from their posts and Hiruzen was forced to select new elders. He decided on his two loyal students: Jiraiya and Tsunade. Jiraiya would only be available for council meetings if it was deemed important. Tsunade was chosen because Hiruzen wanted to groom her to be the next Hokage, not that she knew that. Although he didn't want to remain Hokage, he knew he had to teach Tsunade everything that was needed to become Hokage before he retired.

The younger kids in Root were put into an orphanage and were adopted by the villagers to help them regain their emotions. Two of the kids requested to live with each other instead of with a guardian. Hiruzen didn't like the idea of having kids live by themselves. He was going to dismiss the request when his surrogate grandson barged in.

 ***Flashback Begins***

Naruto had barged into the Hokage's office when he heard that the old man was hospitalized. "Jiji, are you ok?" Naruto asked, ignoring the fact that Hiruzen was with company.

"As you can see Naruto-kun, I'm in good health. I wished that you would've knocked because, as you can see, I have company." Hiruzen said while chuckling at his grandson's antics. Naruto looked at the two boys that looked around his age. The one that seemed older had blue hair while the younger one had black hair. Both boys seemed awfully pale.

"Oh sorry about that Jiji, I was just worried about you." Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly in embarrassment. The blonde boy sat down on the couch so he wouldn't disturb the two guests while he waited. The two guests, seeing that Naruto wasn't leaving, continued the conversation with the Hokage.

"Hokage-sama, can you please allow us to live together?" The blue haired boy asked hopefully. "Sai is like a little brother to me and I don't want us to be separated if one of us gets adopted." The blued haired boy explained. The black haired boy named Sai nodded his head in agreement.

Hiruzen sighed out loud. He honestly didn't want to separate the two boys but living without an adult was hard for children that were still in the Academy. "I'm sorry Shin-kun but it's difficult to live without a caretaker. Finding a place to rent you an apartment would also be quite difficult." The Sandaime informed.

Before the blue haired boy called Shin could respond, Naruto cut into the conversation. "Jiji they could live in my building since no one else lives there besides me." The young jinchuriki commented. The two boys looked at Naruto as if he was the savior to their problems. Naruto began pressing Hiruzen even more. "Plus, they'll have an orphan stipend until they graduate from the Academy, which should be more than enough to live by. I really hope you don't separate family just because they don't have an adult to take care of them. Look at me, I've turned out just fine even with my 'circumstances'." Naruto stressed the word 'circumstances', hoping to guilt trip the old man.

Naruto's plan worked as work as Hiruzen felt remorseful for not taking care of Naruto better. The Hokage took a puff from his pipe before blowing it out. "Fine you'll have your wish." The Sandaime said. The two boys looked at each other and smiled. "But you'll need to pay rent and attend the Academy to become a shinobi." Hiruzen smiled as he thought the conditions were too lenient, but he didn't feel like facing Naruto's wrath.

 ***Flashback Ends***

It was later reported that Shin had a life threatening medical condition. Normal doctors were unable to pinpoint the reason for his disease and a way to cure it. Luckily, Tsunade wasn't a normal doctor and had seen such a disease in her travels. She was able to successfully cure him and he no longer had to worry about dying from the disease. The medic program that Hiruzen had installed at the hospital not only helped the Academy students but the doctors as well. The doctors were better equipped to handle more difficult injuries and diseases, thanks to Tsunade's guidance. The students were taught basic medical techniques like how to use a first aid kit and other simple things that could help a wounded shinobi in the field. Tsunade refused to teach medical Ninjutsu to the students because it required good chakra control. She also believed that they needed to be at least Genin for them to be worth her time. Hiruzen agreed as chakra control was something their Jonin sensei was supposed to teach them.

Hiruzen spun his chair around to face the picture of Minato. "I hope I'm doing you proud Minato. I'm slowly but surely fixing my mistakes. Hopefully I can take care of my greatest mistake before I pass on." The evening sun shined on Hiruzen's rock face on the Hokage Monument. Hiruzen smiled as if Minato had asked the heavens to give Hiruzen an answer.

 ***Two Years Later***

Naruto sat on the swing as he watched students walk out of the Academy to their parents with their hitai-ate. Of course, Naruto didn't receive his hitai-ate like the others. After all, he was taking the Genin exams next year. The blonde was actually waiting for Shin and Tenten to come out. Sai, wearing all black shinobi clothing, was sitting next to him on his own swing. He had gotten close to his neighbors and they were like a family. Shin was the oldest, Naruto in the middle, and Sai the youngest.

When they had first met, Shin was like Naruto in some ways. Both were hyperactive and loud but Shin was more absent-minded than Naruto was. Shin would sometimes stumble into things because he would be thinking about other stuff. Sai was the reserved one of the trio. He preferred to draw or read books. He and Naruto shared a common interest when it came to books. Sai was very impressionable, due to the fact that he would take anything a book would say as advice.

He had once read a book on nicknames, which stated that giving people nicknames was a sign of friendship. That next day, Sai gave everyone in class a nickname based on their appearances and personality. Naruto had to stop Sai's frankness because he kept saying mean things unintentionally. The blonde had to give his younger brother a book on manners to stop him. Sai apologized but the damage was already done. Now everyone saw Sasuke's hair as a duck's butt. Strangely enough, Sasuke's fan club seemed to increase after the incident.

Sakura now took out her wrath out on Sai, instead of Naruto, after Sai had called her 'howler monkey'. Only Sai would dodge her attempts and the pinkette would hit whatever was near Sai instead. She was scolded by Iruka after she broke too many chairs. Naruto's affections for the pink haired girl had decreased due to the fact that he was constantly training. Most of his time was used to hone his skills or to pull pranks. After a while, he no longer saw Sakura as anything more than a classmate.

He attributed his liking of Sakura to the fact that he thought of Sasuke as a rival. The blonde still considered Sasuke as a rival but he didn't voice it. He tried to befriend the raven haired boy like he promised Mikoto. Despite multiple attempts to strike up a conversation, Sasuke would only reply with grunts. The jinchuriki really wanted to be friends with the Uchiha since they both understood what it was like to lose a family. Mikoto and Itachi were as much of a family for Naruto as they were for Sasuke. He eventually gave the raven haired boy space after Sasuke said that he refused to associate with a loser like Naruto.

While disheartened by the Uchiha's comment, Naruto didn't mind as he had a group of friends. Shikamaru would invite him, and by extension Shin and Sai, to dinner at the Nara Compound. Yoshino quickly warmed up to the two boys and constantly doted on them like she did with Naruto. At first, they loved the attention since neither had a mother. But before long they understood that Yoshino's affection was… troublesome.

Naruto was now able to beat Shikamaru in shogi but still lost four out of five times. Shin was too impatient for the game while Sai preferred to draw. The blonde felt confident enough to challenge Shikaku, only to be beaten to the ground in a few moves. The Nara heir smirked as he knew his dad was a difficult opponent. Ino and Chouji would often come over to play as well.

Chouji was quick to open up to Shin and Sai after he saw that Shikamaru had done the same. Naruto's and Chouji's eating contests were constantly going back and forth with the Akimichi currently in the lead. Naruto started to train with the big boned boy at Shikamaru's request. The Nara heir figured that this generation of Ino-Shika-Cho would likely be placed on the same team. Shikamaru wanted the plump boy to get stronger so that he could do less work. The jinchuriki knew that Shikamaru just wanted to make sure Chouji could handle himself in a fight.

Ino, on the other hand, didn't like Sai at all. After Sai had called her 'blond howler monkey', she was displeased that she was compared to Sakura. The two girls would constantly fight or scream at Sai, much to the annoyance of the class. The pale boy ignored them while smirking, making Naruto swear his little brother was sadistic. Ino was on much friendlier terms with Naruto and Shin. She was still the co-president of the ever-growing Sasuke fan club though.

Hinata had become more outgoing and she stuttered less. The Hyuuga girl started to gain confidence from sparing with Naruto. The blonde finally asked why she constantly stalked him every day. She fainted on the spot as Sai came to get Naruto for dinner. She was nicknamed 'closet pervert' courtesy of Sai after the event. Naruto, hoping to not hurt her feelings, told her they were just friends and that he didn't plan on being in a relationship anytime soon. Hinata was dishearten but settled with being a friend. The Hyuuga heiress hoped to get stronger to impress both her father and Naruto.

Kiba and Akamaru had a strange kind of friendship with the blond. Akamaru would actively greet Naruto and his friends and was rather close to Naruto. Kiba, on the other hand, refused to associate with the jinchuriki for some reason. Naruto later found out from Ino that Kiba had a crush on Hinata but she only paid attention to Naruto. Kiba apparently wanted to be friends with Naruto but his pride got in the way most of the time.

Shino was Naruto's best friend of the entire group. Although he was great friends with Shikamaru, the Aburame boy understood him better. They were both disliked by most of the populace because of what they carried. Naruto was scorned because of the Kyuubi while Shino was stared at with disgust because he carried kikaichu in his body. The blond would often visit the Aburame Compound and was generally accepted by the clan. Naruto even met Shino's childhood friend Torune, who had recently came back from a long term mission.

Tenten was Naruto's best female friend. They constantly spar and train together. Naruto taught her Fuinjutsu to incorporate with her fighting style while Tenten worked with Naruto on his Kenjutsu. She quickly became friends with Yugao after she found that the ANBU woman also loved weapons, even if it was only swords. Tenten was ecstatic to meet her idol, Tsunade, but was extremely disappointed when she had met the drunkard. From that point on, Tenten only admired Tsunade's beauty and skills as a kunoichi.

Naruto wanted to tell her about the Kyuubi but was afraid how she would react. She was his first true friend and he trusted Tenten. But unlike with Shino and Shikamaru, Tenten was directly affected by the actions of the Kyuubi. He didn't know until the brunette told him about her past. The Kyuubi had killed her parents, leaving her an orphan. Kajiya and Tera had adopted the girl afterwards. Naruto was scared that he would lose her when he revealed the truth.

Meanwhile Naruto's skills were progressing at a nice pace. He had finally succeeded in using the **Bunshin no Jutsu** after receiving Yugao's advice. He made 70 clones, instead of the required 3, and they didn't come out deformed. The blond boy was able to use his other jutsus without hand signs after his older sister had pointed it out to him. Yugao told him about chakra memory, which was similar to muscle memory.

After using one jutsu multiple times, the body was able to remember how much chakra was needed and how it was molded to activate the jutsu. Hand signs were a way to make the body learn the jutsu faster and to stabilize the jutsu. Generally only E and some D rank jutsu were used without hand signs since other stronger jutsus required more power and the hand signs helped with controlling that power. Naruto asked Yugao if it was possible to do one handed signs. Yugao nodded but stated that one must possess amazing chakra control. If the person had lousy control, the jutsu would fail or backfire.

Naruto had then began working on the leaf concentration exercise to increase his chakra control. Initially he loathed doing leaf concentration since it reminded of him of the time that Iruka made him do it as punishment. Eventually, the blond was able to hold three leaves on his body for six hours. To make the exercise more difficult, he would run while applying chakra to make the leaves stick to him. He had asked Hayate for a more advanced chakra control exercise but his Kenjutsu sensei said that those exercises were only available to those who were Genin and above.

Hayate was cured of his coughing problem thanks to Tsunade's medical expertise. It was weird for a while for Naruto and other shinobi to not hear the man cough. Yugao became even more infatuated with his sensei now that he was cured and at one point, he didn't see them for an entire week. Naruto's training in **Kage Iai Ryu** was progressing thanks to the help of Hayate and Shizune. Shizune taught him human anatomy and where the pressure points were located.

Using that knowledge, Hayate instructed Naruto on how to strike those areas with his sword. Thanks to his constant training, Naruto's physical abilities was now comparable to most of his classmates. He had now possessed high Chunin stamina. His strength was near the lower half of his classmates as his skill set didn't rely on strength. He wasn't exactly sure where he stacked up against his classmates since he never went all out.

He did know that he was weaker than Shin and slightly stronger than Sai when going at full strength. The three boys often sparred without holding back. They told him about the old Root program and Naruto remembered that he was also recruited by Danzo when he was younger. They were instructed by Hiruzen to not garner too much attention since their skills were that of a high Genin.

When Naruto was ready for level 3 in Fuinjutsu training, he sought out Jiraiya for training. The Hokage told him that the toad sage had left on an important mission. Naruto sighed and wished he had talked to Jiraiya earlier even if his godfather was a pervert and an ass that left him alone for 8 years. After all, his father and mother made him his godfather. He must've been important to at least one of them.

Naruto hoped that his Jonin sensei would be able to teach him Taijutsu, maybe even Genjutsu if his chakra control got better. Just as Naruto finished musing, Shin and Tenten walked out of the building. Shin was wearing all black ANBU clothing from top to bottom. Naruto had suggested outfit changes for both Sai and Shin but they refused. They were used to wearing ANBU clothing because of their time in Root. Shin's hitai-ate was wrapped tightly on his left bicep.

Tenten wore a pink qipao blouse as her top and dark green pants covering her legs. Her hitai-ate was tied to her forehead with the cloth being a darker shade of blue than her shinobi sandals. The quartet quickly left and went to Tenten's house for a celebration for the two new Konoha ninja. Tenten hoped she had a cool sensei and team. Naruto already knew that Shin enlisted in the new Root program since he had many comrades there.

The requirement for joining the Root program was unknown since it technically didn't exist. Shin was allowed to enroll because he was a part of the old program. The new Root ninjas were trained in espionage and were usually on missions outside the village. This allowed the ANBU to concentrate their forces inside the village. Root ANBU even served as backup members on difficult missions or when a squad requested reinforcements. The program was only known to Chunin level and higher shinobi. It was kept from public knowledge to ensure that there wouldn't be any backlash.

Sai had wanted join at the same time as Shin but the oldest brother urged him to spend more time with his friends. Sai nodded, promising to join after he graduated. Naruto preferred not to join because he wanted to be Hokage. Since Root mainly worked in the shadows, his mission records wouldn't be publicly known. There was no way the villagers would accept him as Hokage if they didn't know of his accomplishments. Plus he doubted that would enjoy staying away from the village, where most of his friends were.

The families of the new graduates celebrated as their kids had joined the ranks of Konohagakure shinobi. In another year, Naruto would also be a Genin.

 ***Ten Months Later***

Naruto was jogging around the village in the early morning hours when he spotted two silhouettes from a distance. As he got closer, he saw two males walking on their hands. It was hard to miss them due to the fact their outfit was green spandex. The only redeeming feature of the outfit was the orange leg warmers, at least according to Naruto. "Look Lee, someone else is exercising on this youthful morning." The older man beamed to his disciple.

"Yosh, Gai-sensei! This person is worthy in becoming my rival." The younger version proclaimed to his sensei. Lee jumped from his position and landed in front of Naruto, stopping the blond from moving forward. "Hello my name is Rock Lee, may I have your name?" Lee asked while he held out his hand.

"Uzumaki Naruto, nice to meet you Lee but I need to finish my jog." Naruto shook Lee's hand, hoping to flee from the green spandex boy. Lee's bushy eyebrows were sending chills down his spine.

However, Gai stopped the blond by placing a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "Ah, you must be young Naruto, whom our Tenten talks about. It seems that you're a very hard worker just like she told us." Gai commented.

Before Naruto said another word, Tenten came running up to the group. "Gai-sensei you're late for the team meeting, what are you doing?" Tenten asked when she spotted Naruto. "Naruto what are you doing here?" The brunette wondered.

Naruto answered with his own question. "These two are a part of your team?" He said, pointing to Guy and Lee before continuing. "I thought you said that your sensei and teammates were super cool?"

Gai and Lee smiled brightly, causing Naruto's eyes to flinch in pain. "Did you hear that Lee? Our youthful Tenten told her friend that we're cool. I'm one step closer to beating my rival Kakashi in coolness now." Gai shouted out.

"Hai Gai-sensei! I think that Tenten was embarrassed by our coolness so she only told her friends." Lee added on.

"LEE!"

"GAI-SENSEI!"

"LEE!"

"GAI-SENSEI!"

This image of two males in green spandex hugging each other with tears falling from their eyes was horrifying. Naruto had lucky closed his eyes because the **Sunset Genjutsu** soon came into effect. The early morning goers that saw the scene passed out with foam coming out of their mouth. Tenten simply cringed because she had seen the image many times, too many by her count. "Naruto I hope you understand why I lied to you." She whispered.

Naruto nodded and placed a hand on her shoulder. His eyes were full of pity and sadness for his friend. "Tenten I'm sorry, I don't know how you can deal with them." Naruto replied, trying to console her while giving her a reassuring smile.

Gai ended the Genjutsu with Lee and turned to the Naruto. "Young Naruto-kun how would you like to train with us today?" Gai asked the blond. The jinchuriki winced at the idea, not wanting to spend any more time with the spandex duo.

"Even though he's weird, Gai-sensei is the best Taijutsu user in Konoha." Tenten told him.

"Sure." The blonde replied, changing his mind. "I was hoping someone could help me with my Taijutsu, as it's one of my weak areas." Naruto added. The quartet headed towards Training Ground 9 where a long black haired boy stood. The training ground was like Training Ground 11, except that it had dummies and was littered with weapons. _'I keep telling Tenten to pick up her weapons after she's done with them but she never listens.'_ Naruto thought in his head.

"Guy-sensei I wish you would inform me and Tenten if you're going to be late." The boy said to Guy, annoyance evident in his tone. Naruto noticed that the boy oddly resembled Hinata. Most likely a Hyuuga, seeing as the boy wore a khaki shirt and dark brown shorts. Bandages were wrapped around his right arm and right leg. The blue shinobi sandals on his feet completed the outfit.

"That was unyouthful of me Neji; I'll be here on time from now on. IF I'M NOT, I'LL RUN A THOUSAND LAPS AROUND KONOHA ON MY HANDS!" Gai announced, much to the disdain of the people nearby.

"Anyways, are we going to train?" Neji inquired. "I have clan matters I must attend to." The black haired boy said even though he had no such thing. It was the only possible way to escape the spandex duo. He finally noticed the blonde standing next to Tenten. "What's he doing here?"

Gai smiled at Neji's question. "This here is Naruto-kun, a friend of Tenten's and an equally youthful person. Naruto-kun this is my other student, Hyuuga Neji." Gai introduced the two.

"Hello my name's Uzumaki Naruto, nice to meet you." Naruto greeted.

Neji frowned and had a look of distaste. "I see. You're the boy that is friends with Hinata-sama." The Hyuuga male remembered. Naruto smiled but Neji continued. "No wonder. Trash tends to stick together. After all, fate dictates that they'll never amount to anything." Neji said, causing Naruto to fume.

"Hey, I don't care what you call me but DON'T call my friends trash!" The jinchuriki roared.

"I have every right to call you whatever I please. Fate separates the winners from the losers. You're fortunate that a talented kunoichi like Tenten is even friends with you. A loser can only lick the ground of where the winner stands." Neji finished his monologue. Tenten was furious at her teammate for insulting her best friend. She was about to tell him off but Lee intervened.

"Neji, in your eyes a loser will always be a loser but with hard work anything can change." Lee advised.

Neji smirked at the spandex boy. "Lee, you were the dead last of our graduating class and you aren't able to mold chakra yet you still persisted on being a shinobi. I'll admit that I no longer see you as trash as your skills has grown since training with Gai-sensei." Neji admitted, causing Lee to smile at the acknowledgment. Neji would once again down his spirits. "You're now the ground under my feet instead of the trash that rolls around."

Naruto was mad, no he was infuriated! "Gai-sensei, can I spar with your student?" The blonde requested as he desperately tried to control himself. Naruto's mind was raging to thrash the disgusting human being in front of him.

Tenten put a hand on his shoulder. "You might be good for an Academy student Naruto, but Neji was the Rookie of the Year. He's arguably the best of our generation." She warned.

Naruto shrugged the hand off his shoulder and looked at Tenten, dead in the eye. "Tenten, titles like Rookie of the Year don't matter out in the battlefield. I may be weak but I'm not as weak as you think." The blonde refuted.

Naruto turned away from her and stood opposite of Neji. Tenten was stunned by Naruto's words. She always sparred with him so she knew how strong he was. Why didn't he understand that she was trying to protect him? Gai approached the two boys and stood in the middle. "Naruto-kun I thank you for being civilized and requesting a spar against my student instead of outright attacking him." Gai bowed in gratitude before standing back up. "This is a spar so they'll be no killing blows. The spar ends when I say so or when your opponent surrenders." Gai explained the rules of the spar.

"This is your last chance to surrender before I pummel you into the ground. Fate dictates that I'll emerge victorious." Neji smirked before getting into his Juken stance. The jinchuriki chose not to comment and simply looked at Neji impassively. The outgoing Naruto was replaced as his serious side kicked in. Naruto was analyzing the male Hyuuga like a book, trying to find a weakness to exploit. After deciding on a plan of attack, he unsealed his wakizashi from its scroll.

Lee waited with anticipation for the spar to start even though he was still feeling down from Neji's comments. Tenten sighed in defeat and just hoped the two wouldn't hurt each other too much. Gai raised his hand up and after a tense moment dropped it saying "Hajime!".

 **-Naruto vs Neji-**

Neji and Naruto both stood there, waiting for the other to attack. Neji was obviously not taking this seriously as he didn't even activate his Byakugan. Naruto decided to take the initiative and try to capitalize on the fact that he was being underestimated. **"Bushin no Jutsu**." In an instant, hundreds of Narutos filled the training area.

"Such a useless technique when faced with ' **Byakugan'**." Neji activated his Doujutsu and scanned the area. However he was unable to find the real Naruto among the crowd. "Hmph, he ran away as soon as he had the chance." The Hyuuga concluded. Naruto suddenly appeared in front of Neji, with his back to the Hyuuga. The only person that saw what had happened was Gai. After making the numerous bunshins, Naruto used **Kawarimi no Jutsu** to replace himself with one of the abundant shuriken on the ground. The shuriken the blonde chose to replace himself with was more than 50 feet away. Gai concluded that Naruto had experience with fighting the Byakugan to know some of its limits. Naruto then applied chakra to his feet and sprinted to attack Neji.

To knock Gai out of his thoughts, Naruto slid his wakizashi back into its sheath. " **Kage Iai Ryu: Mikadzuki (Shadow Quick Draw Style: Crescent Moon)**." The jinchuriki whispered out. When the blade was fully in the sheath, blood sprayed out from all over Neji's back. A crescent strike was etched into his back and red liquid was dripping out of the wound. "You shouldn't have underestimated me. If we were allowed killing blows, you would be dead right now." Naruto said with no outward emotion.

Tenten had never seen her friend like this before. Every time they had sparred, there was always a smile on his face. _'Is this how strong he really is?'_ Tenten thought while observing the spar.

Neji panted before gathering his breath. "So even a loser can injure me, I'll make sure you'll never hit me again." The Hyuuga arrogantly commented even though his back was dripping blood. Naruto put his hand up to activate a seal. Neji saw this and noticed that there was a paper seal on his back thanks to Byakugan.

"Looks like you've noticed my seal on your back." Naruto said as he smiled at Neji. "Too bad you noticed it too late. You lose Neji." Naruto activated the seal and light surrounded Neji. The male Hyuuga was blinded by the sudden light, forcing him to deactivate his Doujutsu. " **Kage Iai Ryu: Tsubame no Mure (Shadow Quick Draw Style: Swarm of Swallows)**." Naruto rapidly slashed Neji's body dozens of times. When the light dissipated, Naruto was slowly sheathing his blade while Neji stood there frozen. As soon as the wakizashi returned into its scabbard, red liquid splattered into the air.

Naruto bent down to face Neji, who had fallen to the ground. "This so called trash just defeated you. If what you said was true, then what are you now that you lost to trash? Your so called fate didn't help you win even though you said it would. You said that fate dictates life, then why not change it? You didn't try to change it because you're a coward. You took the coward's way out and wallowed in self-pity and arrogance." Naruto then got up and apologized to Guy for hurting his student before leaving the training ground.

Neji laid there with his face on the ground, thinking about Naruto's words. Gai sat down next to his defeated student. "Neji everyone here believed that you were strong, much stronger than Naruto-kun." Gai comforted the Hyuuga. "The only one who didn't believe that was Naruto-kun. He was able to beat you because you were arrogant and underestimated him. I hope you learned an important lesson today and think about the words that he told you." Gai said in a serious tone, unlike his usual exuberant self.

' _Is it possible to change fate? He was obviously weaker than me yet he was able to win. I may not know if fate could be changed but I'll at least try from now on.'_ Neji thought as he reached a self-realization. "Hai Gai-sensei." Neji said with a rare smile on his face.

"Yosh! I'll also make Naruto-kun my eternal rival." Lee shouted at the top of his lungs. The spandex duo then carried Neji to the hospital but not before telling the stunned Tenten that she had the rest of the day off. Gai also told her to tell Naruto that he was welcome to join in their training.

Tenten nodded before running off to catch up to her best friend. The weapon mistress didn't need to run far as Naruto soon came into view. "Naruto, wait a minute." The brunette shouted as she grabbed Naruto by the arm, stopping him from going any farther.

Naruto's eyebrows arched up in confusion. "What's up Tenten?" Naruto asked his friend.

"What was all of that Naruto? I've never seen you move like that before." Tenten asked since every time they had sparred, Naruto never displayed such skills.

"Well, to be honest, I didn't want to attack the stick up the ass (Neji) like that." Naruto rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "He made me so mad for insulting my friends. I don't care if he talks about me, I'm used to it. But when he talks about my friends, it's a different story. So I wanted to pummel him and make him regret it. Those attacks are mainly used to severely injure or kill my opponent. I would never use them against my friends." The blonde admitted to his best female friend.

Tenten sighed for the second time today and approached Naruto. _'Why is he always so selfless? He never thinks about himself. It's an admirable trait yet why does it feel so sad?'_ Tenten thought as she wrapped her arms around Naruto. Naruto was surprised by the action but he hugged her back. They stood there together for a brief moment until a booming voice rang throughout the village.

"Look Gai-sensei! I told you Tenten embraced your teachings of youth!" Lee shouted from a hospital window.

"Yes!" Gai replied. "You're right my student, youthful Tenten is just too shy to show it." Gai then flashed a nice guy pose towards Tenten and Naruto. Lee followed the action and his teeth twinkled. The blonde and brunette blushed and quickly separated from each other. A nurse came by and told them to leave since they were disturbing the patients. Naruto and Tenten laughed as the nurse chased Guy and Lee with a clipboard, held over her head ready to strike.

 ***Graduation Day, two months later***

Naruto sat there anxiously as the rest of the class came into the room. Some were nervous while others just wanted to get the exams over with. Naruto waited his turn for the Ninjutsu part of the exam. The boy answered enough questions on the written part to pass. He was able to pass the throwing weapons test with ease. In the Taijutsu portion, Mizuki went up against Naruto. The blond was able to win using a style that Gai taught him.

Gai taught Naruto as promised and after seeing Naruto's horrible Taijutsu, was motivated even further. The blonde's Taijutsu was called **Suifuto Tsubame (Swift Swallow)**. It was an original style inspired by Naruto's **Tsubame no Mure** attack. It was an evasive style that used Naruto's instincts and limber body to dodge attacks. The blonde would dodge or parry before attacking different areas of the body. The style fitted the jinchuriki to a tee since he knew many of the pressure points of the human body.

It was thanks to Neji, however, that the style had been formed. After being discharged from the hospital, the Hyuuga wasn't as pessimistic nor did he belittle others like before. While he was still serious, Neji smiled more. When Gai asked Neji for advice, Naruto was sure that the Hyuuga male would refuse since the Juken was a clan technique. Instead, Neji instructed the blonde on how the Juken worked and in return, Naruto would spar with Neji. The Hyuuga teen wanted to see how the Juken stacked against a style similar to it.

Naruto constantly had his tenketsu points closed since Neji never went easy. Eventually Naruto was able to parry Neji's attacks but still couldn't land a hit. The new style would take time to perfect since it was new. Neji acknowledged that Naruto might one day be an equal to him and Lee in Taijutsu. When the blonde used the **Suifuto Tsubame** against Mizuki, it was the first time that he had ever landed a hit. This resulted in him sending Mizuki to the floor in pain.

Mizuki was escorted to the hospital as everyone looked on in shock. Sasuke was seething with jealously and demanded Naruto to teach him that style. Naruto refused since it was his own and he wanted to perfect it before teaching anybody. Sasuke didn't say anything as Naruto didn't outright refuse or accept to teach him. The Uchiha simply grunted and went back to brooding. The Ninjutsu portion was the last part and it went in alphabetical order.

Naruto was among the last in the room before his name was called. "Alright Naruto, I need you to do the three basic Academy Justus." Iruka said. The two were the only ones in the room since Naruto had sent Mizuki to the hospital. Naruto used **Kawarimi** with a chair in the room and used **Henge** to turn into Iruka. He finished off the test with 50 **Bunshins**. Iruka was beyond happy and congratulated Naruto before grabbing a hitai-ate.

"Naruto, if you would let me, can I put your hitai-ate on you?" Iruka asked his now ex-student.

"Sure sensei, by all means." Naruto replied with a grin. Iruka bent down and replaced Naruto's goggles with the hitai-ate. When he finished, small tears formed from his eyes.

He hugged the boy tightly before releasing. "I always believed that you could do it, I'm so proud of you." Iruka smiled as he wiped away the tears.

Naruto, this time, embraced his teacher. "Thank you for not hating me like everybody else Iruka-sensei. I learned a lot from you, even though your lectures were boring." The blonde joked. The two shared a quick laugh and promised to meet at Ichiraku's another time. Naruto met up with his friends and they went to the Akimichi's to celebrate their graduation. It was a festive day and around nighttime, Naruto left the compound to talk to the Sandaime.

He entered the room to find a limping Mizuki with a large scroll in his hands. "Look at my luck! Just before I leave the village, I get to kill the demon brat." Mizuki grinned evilly while placing the forbidden scroll down.

"So you're a traitor Mizuki-teme. I always thought your smiles were fake. Let me ask you a question before you die, who are you working for and why?" Naruto asked but went into his Taijutsu stance. Mizuki laughed hysterically at the boy.

"Who are you to ask me those questions?" The traitor mocked. "Since you're going to die anyway, I'll indulge in your last wish. I work for the great Orochimaru-sama and he promised me power to match even the Kages." Mizuki confessed to Naruto.

"There's no way you could do this alone. You're too stupid for that, who's helping you?" The blonde inquired, trying to goat Mizuki into revealing more information.

"I'm not stupid you fucking demon." The ex-teacher yelled. "Wait, why are you so calm when I'm about to kill you?" Mizuki's eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Damn. I was hoping to get more information out of you. He's all yours ANBU-san." The jinchuriki called out. At Naruto's words, an ANBU appeared from the shadows and captured Mizuki with ninja wire. Mizuki didn't have time to react as the Hokage came into the room.

"ANBU, take the traitor to the T&I building and give me a report on all the findings." Hiruzen told the ANBU, who immediately left. The Sandaime sat down in his chair and faced his surrogate grandson. "Looks like you graduated Naruto-kun, congratulations on becoming a Genin." The Hokage congratulated his newest Genin. His face then warped into one of seriousness. "Good job on getting Mizuki to reveal information but how did you know there was an ANBU nearby?" He asked Naruto.

Naruto gave a wide grin. "I just figured that there would be one nearby since an ANBU usually follows me around. Luckily I guessed right and Mizuki was apprehended without me lifting a finger." The blonde explained. "Oh, I won't be committing anymore pranks so you can tell them to stop tailing me." The new Genin added.

Hiruzen sweat dropped at the boy. Naruto had knew about the ANBU tailing him and the reason why they did. "Ignoring that last sentence, you shouldn't have provoked an enemy shinobi." He warned.

"I'm pretty sure I could take on Mizuki but I'll be more cautious next time." Naruto nodded and thanked his grandfather for the advice.

"Anyways Naruto, you'll receive partial pay for a B rank mission for your assistance in apprehending Mizuki. This won't go on your record as you're not officially a Genin until you see your Jonin sensei."

Hiruzen mixed some truth with the lies to prevent Naruto from knowing about the official Genin test. "Okay Jiji. I just stopped by to tell you I graduated but I see that you're going to be busy so I'll leave." Naruto said while saying his goodbyes to the Hokage.

When Naruto left the room, an ANBU **Shunshin** into the room. "What's the status of Mizuki, Dragon?" Hiruzen asked the ANBU Commander.

"Mizuki has revealed everything after he was interrogated by Ibiki. Inoichi mind walked into Mizuki to confirm that he's telling the truth. He has ties with a spy of Orochimaru, a Genin named Yakushi Kabuto. Kabuto's currently working at the hospital. We've also found a hideout that leads out of Konoha thanks to Mizuki." Dragon finished his report. The Hokage recognized the name Kabuto and scanned Danzo's Root roster.

"I want a team to capture Kabuto but proceed with caution. From Danzo's records, Kabuto was a former Root ANBU so he has at least Chunin skills. Take another team to investigate that hideout." The Hokage ordered. He had miscalculated, trusting in Danzo's papers. Hiruzen frowned that he allowed a mole to remain in Konoha.

Dragon nodded and left to gather the teams. Hiruzen lit his pipe with a small fire jutsu. _'How did Kabuto infiltrate Konoha without anyone knowing? He even hid in broad daylight yet no one suspected a thing. Is it possible that there's another traitor within our midst?'_ The old man mused as he was left alone with a stack of paperwork.

 ***A week later at an unknown location***

"I've returned Orochimaru-sama, Mizuki was captured by Konohagakure. I was unable to assassinate him before he revealed your secrets. I wish for you to forgive me for this failure." Kabuto reported while bowing. His ash grey hair was styled in a ponytail while the shinobi wore a high collared purple shirt with matching pants. A flask was thrown across the room and impacted the wall next to Kabuto.

"I knew I should've killed that idiot when I had the chance. It'll be more difficult to infiltrate Konoha now that Sarutobi is on the lookout for us." Orochimaru raged and accidentally killed the specimen on the table. The Sannin's extremely pale skin glowed in the dark cave. The man's golden iris' were able to strike fear in most beings. With purple markings around his eyes and fang-like teeth, it was appropriate to call him the snake Sannin.

"Shit! I killed this fool." Orochimaru cursed, throwing the corpse to the side. "This is unfortunate but we'll need to push back our plans to invade Konoha. The invasion will happen sometime after the Chunin Exams. Go and inform the Kazekage that the proposal is null and void because of complications. Also Kimimaro, I've a mission for you." Orochimaru barked out orders before turning to an equally pale skinned male. Two scarlet dots were marked on the male's forehead, proving him to be a member of the Kaguya clan. His white hair swooshed as he bent down to his knee.

"Is there anything I can do for you Orochimaru-sama?" Kimimaro asked his savior.

"I've heard of an interesting rumor out of Kusagakure. Apparently there's someone with abilities to heal people if bitten. I want you to find that person and bring them back here alive. They might be an interesting subject to test or a tool to heal my troops. Either way, take the rest of the Sound Five with you and don't fail me Kimimaro." The snake Sannin ordered Kimimaro.

"Of course Orochimaru-sama, your wish is my command." Kimimaro said before walking off.

' _Sarutobi-sensei, your beloved Konoha will fall to me and on that day I will kill you. kukuku.'_ Orochimaru laughed as he looked at the jars that contained the Sharingan eyes that he was going to implant in Danzo's arm.

 ***At the same time in Konoha***

The Academy graduates waited patiently for Iruka to come and announce who would be their teammates. Unknown to them, the Hokage and several Jonins were watching them interact through his crystal ball. After a few short minutes, the Jonins backed up and waited for the Sandaime to speak. "You can now make your requests, if you have any." Hiruzen told the soon to be senseis. Three people raised their hands. Those Jonins were Sarutobi Asuma, Hatake Kakashi, and Yuuhi Kurenai. "I'll hear you out and decide whether to accept the request or not." The Hokage pointed to Kakashi first.

"I would like Uchiha Sasuke on my team as I'm the only one capable of teaching him the Sharingan." Kakashi said with an eye smile. The former ANBU captain was once again late to the meeting, forcing everyone to wait for him.

"I would like to request Hyuuga Hinata on my team for personal reasons Hokage-sama." Kurenai, the newest Jonin, requested.

"I want this generation's Ino-Shika-Cho." Asuma smirked as he ran a hand through his spiky black hair. The Sandaime's son had just returned from his service as a member of the twelve guardian shinobi. His attire consisted of a standard blue Jonin outfit. The main difference was that he had on a white sash with the kanji 'fire' written in red, tied to his waist. He had a goatee similar to his father. The younger Sarutobi was itching for a cigarette but a quick glare from his former teammate, Kurenai, stopped him.

Hiruzen pondered the requests for a moment. _'Kakashi's right as he's the only one able to help Sasuke. I should put Naruto on that team and see if Kakashi recognizes his sensei's son. Kurenai could hopefully boost Hinata's confidence and train her to be a respectful kunoichi. Asuma, on the other hand, is just being lazy. He knows that it's tradition for a Sarutobi to be the sensei of each generation of Ino-Shika-Cho.'_ The Sandaime mused.

Hiruzen scribbled names on a paper, detailing the teams and sensei. He sent an ANBU to give the parchment to Iruka. He then gave all the Jonins a scroll with information on their team. "All requests are approved and you'll meet with your teams now. You're all dismissed except for Kakashi." The Hokage announced. As the Jonins funneled out of his room, Hiruzen turned to perpetually late Jonin. "Kakashi, you've got to stop being late. I don't care what you do on your own time but when it interferes with other people's time, we have a problem."

"Of course Hokage-sama." Kakashi replied but the Sandaime knew that the silver haired male had already forgot about the discussion.

"I didn't want to resort to this but I need to make sure you're no longer late." The Hokage sighed before reaching into one of his cabinets. The old man pulled out book with a red cover that depicted a man thinking about love. The book was autographed by the author, Jiraiya.

"That's the mega-rare misprint of Icha Icha: Violence with Jiraiya-sama's signature on the cover!" Kakashi shouted, his visible eye widening in disbelief. Only five copies were ever released because Jiraiya had accidently sent the unfinished manuscript of the third book instead of the completed second. It was rumored that Jiraiya had destroyed the copies to prevent anyone from knowing about the third book. The rumor turned out to be false since Hiruzen held one in his hand.

"As I suspected, you know about the existence of this book." The Hokage said as he gently laid down the book on his desk. It was common knowledge that Kakashi was an avid collector of Icha Icha. He had the entire collection baring two. The book in front of him was one. The other was an exclusive book about a red haired woman and a blond male. "This book could be yours."

Kakashi's body jolted on the spot. He desperately wanted that book but he knew that there was a catch. "What do I need to do to obtain that masterpiece?" The Jonin asked.

Hiruzen smiled, knowing that he won. "You simply need to be on time for an entire year. That includes being on time for meetings, missions, and everything in between." The Sandaime replied, causing the Jonin to nod. The Hokage glanced at the clock. "Looks like you're going to be late to meet your team." He said nonchalantly and Kakashi was gone in a puff of smoke, along with the book.

Back at the Academy, Iruka was quieting his class. The Jonins walked into the room to observe the prospective Genins. Kakashi **Shunshin'ed** into the building, surprising everyone. The Jonins and Iruka were astonished that he was even there. The students were surprised to see someone appear suddenly. Kakashi made his way to the back and Iruka continued where he left off. "Okay I'll announce the teams and you'll follow your Jonin-sensei. Before I begin, I would like to announce that the Rookie of the Year is Uchiha Sasuke while Haruno Sakura is our Kunoichi of the Year." As Iruka finished, screams came from the girls as they congratulated Sasuke. Naruto and a few others congratulated Sakura but she was too busy admiring the Uchiha.

Iruka coughed loudly to get the attention once more. "I want to say that I'm proud of all of you for making this far. If you work hard enough, you'll succeed at whatever you choose to do. Good luck on your careers as shinobi. Alright Team 1 is…" Iruka announced the fist few teams. "Team 7 will consist of Haruno Sakura, Uchiha Sasuke, and Uzumaki Naruto while your sensei is Hatake Kakashi."

Sasuke grunted in confirmation but he didn't like his team. _'Great, I get Sakura the fan girl and the dobe. At least the fan girl's smart and she's the Kunoichi of the Year. There's some hope for her. The dobe is going to drag me down with his idiocy. Although the Taijutsu he showed was interesting. This sensei better be competent and teach me everything I want to know. I need to get stronger to kill Itachi.'_ Sasuke thought as he ignored Sakura's proclamation of true love.

The Uchiha's attire consisted of a high collar blue shirt that had the Uchiha symbol on the back. White shorts and matching arm warmers completed the outfit. His hitai-ate was fastened on his forehead. Sakura had grown out her hair after a rumor had circulated, stating that Sasuke liked girls with long hair. Similar to Tenten, Sakura also wore a qipao although of a red variety. She wore tight green shorts underneath with green sandals to match. Her red bow was replaced with her hitai-ate.

Naruto sighed as he laid his head on the desk. _'This team isn't too bad but those two don't particularly like me.'_ Naruto sighed inwardly this time. The blonde wore a larger version of his old dark shinobi clothing. He had grown taller over the years, ranking in the middle of the class. The only change was that his hitai-ate was worn comfortably where his goggles used to be.

Iruka announced the next team. "Team 8 will consist of Aburame Shino, Hyuuga Hinata, and Inuzuka Kiba with your sensei being Yuuhi Kurenai." Shino and Hinata nodded but both were disappointed that Naruto wasn't their teammate, albeit for different reasons. Kiba was all smiles as he was on the team with his crush. The Inuzuka didn't particularly mind the presence of Shino.

Shino sported the typical look of his clan with a high collar greenish jacket and dark shades. Burgundy shinobi pants finished the look. Shino's hitai-ate was also worn on his forehead. Hinata wore a conservative tan jacket with the symbols of the Hyuuga Clan on both arm sleeves. In addition she wore black shinobi pants and blue shinobi sandals. Her hitai-ate was underneath her jacket and hung loosely around her neck. Kiba's outfit remained the same as he still wore his grey jacket. The only addition was the hitai-ate on his forehead and his matching grey pants.

"Team 9 is still in rotation so Team 10 will consist of Akimichi Chouji, Nara Shikamaru, and Yamanaka Ino with your sensei being Sarutobi Asuma." The boys smiled at each other as Shikamaru knew this was going to happen. Ino groaned that she had chubby and lazy instead of being with Sasuke.

Benefiting his lazy nature, Shikamaru wore a simple grey jacket over a mesh shirt. His hitai-ate lay loosely tied around his left sleeve, right underneath his clan symbol. He was wearing brown pants given to him by Yoshino. In contrast, Chouji had the most articles of clothing. On top he wore a white shirt, with the kanji 'food' on it, over which he wore an unbuttoned green haori. A long white scarf was fastened loosely around his neck and he wore black shorts. Both his arms and legs were wrapped in bandages. His hitai-ate was on a headgear that allowed Chouji's brown hair to poke out. Ino wore a vest like blouse and skirt in her favorite color purple. The gap between the two clothing was filled with bandages with her hitai-ate worn like a belt. She also wore bandages underneath her skirt and white arm warmers. All three wore silver loop earrings.

"Sai has been selected to be an apprentice of Tenzo." Iruka announced as a brown haired man raised his hand. Although Naruto didn't know who the man was, he believed that Tenzo must have been a part of Root. The others looked at Sai, who wore the same outfit as Shin, wondering why he had been chosen.

The Jonin senseis collected their teams and left the room. "Team 7 meet me at Training Ground 7 in 10 minutes." Kakashi said as he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Naruto said his goodbyes to his friends as he followed Sasuke and Sakura. Near the entrance of the training ground was a grass field with three thick wooden poles standing upright. The majority of Training Ground 7 was a forest that extended into the next training ground, which was 150 feet away. When they arrived at the training grounds, Kakashi motioned them to the spot with three poles. "Alright how about we introduce ourselves? Tell me your likes, dislikes, dreams, hobbies and skills." Kakashi said as he eye smiled to his team.

"How about you go first sensei?" Sakura asked her sensei.

"Okay, my name's Hatake Kakashi and I'm an elite Jonin of the Konohagakure. I like a few things, dislikes are none of your business, I don't exactly have a dream, and all you need to know about my skills is that I'm strong." Kakashi answered half-heartily. The Genins sweat dropped at their sensei's answer. "Alright bubblegum, it's your turn." Kakashi pointed to Sakura.

' _Shannaro! My hair isn't bubblegum color, its cherry blossom color.'_ The girl thought as she introduced herself. "My name is Haruno Sakura. My likes are *blushes as she glances at Sasuke* and my dream is *once again Sakura glances at Sasuke*. My dislikes are Ino-Pig and Sai-Baka. My hobby is *glancing at Sasuke*. My skills are my intelligence and I know a few medical skills." Sakura concluded her introduction. Kakashi then pointed at Sasuke to introduce himself.

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke, the last loyal Uchiha. I don't like much and I dislike people inferior to me and fan girls." Sakura looked ashamed when Sasuke said that. "Dreams are irrelevant. My ambitions are to revive my clan and to kill a certain man. My only hobby is training to get stronger. My skills are better than everyone in my class as I'm the Rookie of the Year." Sasuke said smugly as he finished. Sakura had hearts in her eyes while staring at the Uchiha. Both Naruto and Kakashi knew who Sasuke was talking about. Kakashi decided to ask Sasuke about it private.

Kakashi pointed to his last student, the pariah of Konoha. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto. My likes are my friends, people that care for me, ramen, pranks, and reading. My dislikes are the three minutes it takes for instant ramen to cook, people who judge others without getting to know them, and getting chased around by the crazy snake lady." Naruto said as a small chill went down his back. Kakashi shivered as well as he knew only one person who used snakes and she wasn't someone to be trifled with.

"My dreams are to become Hokage and to find other Uzumaki, if there are any left in the world." The blonde continued. Sasuke snorted at Naruto's dream.

"As if a clan less dope like you can ever become Hokage." Sasuke smirked. Kakashi thought Naruto would start arguing with Sasuke.

Instead the Uzumaki calmly answered Sasuke's jab. "Even if there isn't any more Uzumaki out there, I'm still one." The blonde replied as he pointing his thumb to his chest. Sasuke wanted to refute but couldn't as it was also partially true for him as well. The jinchuriki continued his introduction.

"My hobbies are gardening and reading all sorts of books. My skills aren't anything special." Naruto lied with a straight face. Kakashi scanned Naruto for any hint of deception. _'It seems I really can't trust the Academy reports on Naruto. He was able to prank me when I was in ANBU, either he's really good in stealth or he's trying to purposely hide his skills.'_ Kakashi thought while observing the blonde.

"Hey sensei, why are we here?" Naruto asked, snapping Kakashi from his thoughts.

"Oh right, you're about to take a test that will determine whether you become Genin or not." Kakashi answered lazily.

"WHAT!?" The lone kunoichi shouted. "We already passed the test to become Genin at the Academy." Sakura protested.

Kakashi showed a neutral face. "That test determines if you have the potential to be a shinobi. The real test determines whether your skills are enough to be a Genin. Only a third of the graduated students will actually become a Genin." The silver haired man answered.

"That means we only have a 33% chance of passing. That's unfair to us." Sakura complained.

"The world of shinobi is unfair but you'll have to deal with it. Anyways, if you want to pass, all you need to do is get a bell from me." The one eyed Jonin said as he held up two bells.

"But Kakashi-sensei, there are only two bells." Sakura stated the fact.

"That means one of you is going to be sent back to the Academy." Kakashi responded.

Kakashi looked at his students for their reactions. Sakura was yelling how she and Sasuke wasn't going to fail. Sasuke hmphed with arrogance as he believed he couldn't possibly fail. Naruto sat there silently and didn't show a single reaction. _'Okay, either he's shitting his pants on the thought of failing or he's already thinking of a plan. Man he really is the most unpredictable ninja.'_ Kakashi thought as he was stumped again by the blond enigma.

 **-Kakashi vs Naruto/Sakura/Sasuke-**

"You'll have exactly one hour or when this clock rings to get one of these bells. Come at me with the intent to kill. The test starts now!" Kakashi announced. At the signal, all three hopeful Genins dashed away from the Jonin. _'Looks like they're smart enough to hide. Now let's see here, I found Sakura in the bush over there. Not bad but I'll need to help her blend into her environments more. Sasuke's in the tree a couple feet away spying on me, pretty good for an Academy student. Naruto is…shit! I should've stopped Naruto from going into the forest. I'm definitely not going to search for him.'_ Kakashi evaluated the three and then pulled out Icha Icha: Paradise. He had placed his newest Icha Icha book at home to prevent it from collecting dust.

Sasuke was infuriated with the Jonin. ' _He's calmly reading a book. Does he think I'm not a worthy opponent?'_ The Uchiha fumed when he felt a tap on his shoulders. The raven haired boy glanced up to find Naruto hanging upside down with his legs holding onto the branch. _'When did the dobe get there?'_

"Hey Sasuke you want to team up together with Sakura? I have a plan." Naruto whispered to his new teammate.

"Hn, I don't need your help. I'm an Uchiha, an elite. There's no way I'm working with you or Sakura." Sasuke said before leaping off the tree to engage Kakashi. Naruto sighed inwardly and went to find Sakura. When he proposed the idea of working together with her, the kunoichi refused saying only she and Sasuke was going to pass. Naruto wished his teammates would at least try to cooperate with him. Shrugging his shoulders in defeat, the blonde went back to placing traps.

Meanwhile Sasuke was attacking Kakashi with Taijutsu. The Uchiha had yet to land a single hit on the Jonin nor had he made Kakashi look away from the book. Sasuke was frustrated with his lack of progress so he switched to Ninjutsu. " **Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)**." Sasuke blew out a large fire ball towards Kakashi. The Copy Nin, seeing the size of the jutsu, disappeared underground. When the fire jutsu finished, charred ground was all that was left where the silver haired man had been standing.

Sasuke smirked at his apparent victory until hands grabbed him by the ankles and pulled him underground. " **Doton: Shinju Zanshu no Jutsu (Earth Release: Double Suicide Decapitation Technique)**." Kakashi said as he jumped out of the ground. "I must say, you surprised me with the size of the fireball but you're too confident in yourself." Kakashi remarked before he leapt away to where Sakura was hiding, leaving a buried, except for his head, Sasuke.

Kakashi was able to instantly fool Sakura with a simple Genjutsu that knocked her out and was now tying her and Sasuke to the posts. _'Looks like another team that failed to pass. It's quite a shame, seeing how Naruto asked them to work together._ _Now I have to find Naruto since I'm required to see his skills even though I don't want to.'_ Kakashi shuddered and proceeded carefully into the forest. After what seemed like five minutes, the Jonin still couldn't find the blond boy.

As he placed his foot on the ground, a trap sprang into action. Kunai came from the left while shuriken came from the right. Kakashi jumped into the air, only to pull a trip wire. An iron ball came from behind him, threatening to shatter his back. With a quick **Kawarimi** with a tree branch, the Copy Nin escaped the iron ball. Just when the Jonin thought it was over, an explosion came from under him. Kakashi was able to escape in time due to his experience.

' _Damn it! It's like he knows exactly where I'm going to land. I shouldn't have told them to come at me with the intent to kill. I need to get out of this forest.'_ Kakashi thought as he dodged two more kunai. Kakashi sped off towards the clearing where Sakura and Sasuke were held. Unfortunately, the two were no longer there. The silver haired man figured they had gone back into hiding. So he waited but they didn't come out. _'Why hasn't the alarm rang yet?'_ Kakashi wondered as he walked towards the alarm clock.

As soon as the Jonin reached for the alarm, Sasuke appeared from the forest and charged the Copy Nin. In the instant Kakashi turned around, a surge of electricity rang through his body. Kakashi collapsed to one knee and looked to see a grinning Naruto. The jinchuriki grabbed the bells and tossed them to Sasuke and Sakura, who had also came out of the forest. "I think we passed the test, Kakashi-sensei." Naruto said as he released his seal.

After a few quick breaths, Kakashi got up to his feet and nodded. Sakura jumped up and down while also trying to hug Sasuke. The Uchiha dodged her as he smirked smugly. Naruto shouted for joy and did a quick victory lap. "Before I tell you why you graduated, tell me how you caught me." He asked his new students. Naruto decided to answer the question.

"When you went into the forest to search for me, I came here and untied Sasuke and Sakura. After I finished untying them, I reset the alarm time. I then proposed my plan once again and they accepted when I told them I'll give them the bells. When you noticed that something was wrong with the clock, we initiated the plan. Sasuke appeared from the trees to distract you momentarily. I used **Kawarimi no Jutsu** to switch places with the clock and I slapped a stun seal on you. You know the rest from there." The blonde explained.

Kakashi nodded but was frowning inwardly. _'In the end, Naruto did most of the work to beat me. It seems like I have a Nara in Naruto without the laziness. If Sasuke can let go of his arrogant pride and Sakura with her infatuation with him, this could be a really good team. I need to fix those issues before I train them.'_ Kakashi thought while showing the trio an eye smile. "Alright, Naruto congratulations on passing the test." He said, much to the shock of the three Genin. "You two will be sent back to the Academy." Kakashi added, pointing to Sakura and Sasuke.

"WHY!?" The kunoichi hollered. "Sasuke and I are the ones who got the bells, not Naruto. He should be the one going back to the Academy." She protested. Sasuke gave Kakashi a full on glare. Naruto sat down wondering why he had passed, when it came to him.

"The actual purpose of this test is teamwork. The only one who actually displayed that was Naruto when he saved you two from the posts and gave you the bells." Kakashi explained.

"Let me tell you a saying my friend once told me, 'Those who don't obey the rules are trash but those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash'." Kakashi repeated Obito's words. He spotted that Sakura was about to complain so he spoke again. "Don't tell me that you two are better than Naruto. Out on the battlefield, titles from the Academy mean nothing. The enemy couldn't care less if you were the Rookie or Kunoichi of the Year. Sasuke, you're too arrogant and think you can accomplish everything on your own. Sakura, you only worry about Sasuke and never once thought about Naruto's safety. Naruto also have flaws that he needs to correct. When he set up his traps, he never thought about your safety. While I survived you guys don't have my skills or experience and would have died if you walked into one of his traps." Kakashi finished talking. Sasuke gritted his teeth in annoyance, Sakura looked down in shame, and Naruto slowly nodded as if he was admitting that Kakashi was right.

"Despite this, I'm passing all of you because I believe we have the potential to be a great team." Kakashi said to them. They all had smiles on their face, although Sasuke's was a small one. "So from now on, we're Team 7."

 **Reviews:**

 **skg1991 –** Well I did want to make this story original. I do know some stories where he doesn't have **Kage Bunshins** , so it isn't exactly a new idea. The elemental clones will give him more advantages but he won't have the information transfer.

 **Xanaris** – Thank you for the advice. When I have time, I'll try to polish up my earlier chapters.

 **bankai777** – He might or he might not. If he does, it'll be during the three year time skip.

 **NinjaFang1331** – Thank you for the compliment.

 **sparrowhawk13 –** I hope the pace wasn't too fast this chapter. I didn't have much left to introduce in the Academy stage. The Sandaime will be slightly stronger than he was in canon.

 **gual1 –** Thank you for reading and reviewing.

 **emilbootanimefreak –** The **Puppy Eyes Jutsu** is officially an E to S rank jutsu since it depends on who uses it and who they use it on lol. Naruto only has Chunin level stamina because he's still young. When he gets older, he'll have more chakra which means more stamina. I'm not giving him the **Kage Bunshin**. The polls are above and it would take a drastic effort from everyone, for Tenten not to be in it.

 **moon fire 13** – I have a way that I think will work stopping him learn B rank and above jutsus. Biju cloak won't be used until the three year time skip when his enemies are stronger.

 **Ryuujin96** – Thank you for the long review. It makes me happy that you took the time to write all of that. Yeah different events causes different chain reactions but not all of them are good. I like the idea of Dosu's drill but I fixed Naruto's Taijutsu with something original. I might incorporate the drill but for something else. I read a lot of fanfics where Naruto pranks the ANBU. Anko is a great character to write since she's so crazy and hilarious. I'll use different reasons to justify each person in the harem. I also think Haku's a great match for Naruto since they're similar.

 **Naruto-kun257** – I really can't see Haku as anything other than a girl. Freaking Japan makes girls look like boys and boys look like girls.

 **Silvermane1 –** Thank you very much.


End file.
